Latest news with #CIVIC
New Indian Express
18-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Activists criticise GBA, warn of BBMP power erosion
BENGALURU: Kathyayini Chamraj, Executive Trustee of CIVIC, criticised the successive governments for delaying the BBMP elections, alleging that the delay was intended to undermine the Palike administration. She claimed the garbage, engineers, and real estate mafia had ruined BBMP. He was addressing a panel discussion involving civic activists, organised to discuss the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and its impact on local governance in Bengaluru on Saturday. CIVIC also stated it would challenge the GBA in court. 'In the GBA, all para-statals come under its ambit. All schemes are prepared by the government. Where is the autonomy of the local body? What authority will the elected body have if everything is controlled by the GBA?' Chamraj questioned. She said that MLA Rizwan Arshad, who chaired the joint legislature panel that introduced the Greater Bengaluru Governance Bill, was misleading the public. Arshad had claimed that the 74th Constitutional Amendment does not provide for control over agencies like Bescom, but the GBA bill covers them all. 'Autonomy of the local body has been reduced to just fixing potholes. Earlier, there was a ward committee, but it also has now been reduced to an advisory body whose recommendations are ineffective,' she said. Retired bureaucrat T R Raghunandan, who delivered the keynote address, warned that frequent delimitation and the creation of new municipalities under the GBA would disrupt reservation rotations for Scheduled Castes, Tribes, OBCs, and women, favouring elite candidates. 'The government's aim is to prevent the rotation of reservations,' he said, adding that the government's actions violated the equity mandates of the 74th Constitutional Amendment. He also observed that frequent delimitation creates new electoral cycles, diluting the representation of marginalised sections. He said cities like Manila and Brussels have decentralised municipalities with clear roles, a model that Bengaluru should adopt.
The Hindu
17-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Bengaluru citizen activists, experts come down heavily on GBG Act
Citizen activists and experts have voiced strong opposition to the newly enforced Greater Bengaluru Governance (GBG) Act 2024, calling it a direct threat to the constitutional mandate for decentralised urban local governance. They argued that the GBGA, which came into effect on May 15 this year, centralises power under the State government and sidelines the principles of the 74th Constitutional Amendment. At a seminar hosted by CIVIC (Citizen Voluntary Initiative for the City) on Saturday, former IAS officer and decentralisation advocate T.R. Raghunandan condemned the Act for placing authority in the hands of the Chief Minister, instead of enabling elected urban local bodies to function independently. 'This Act flies in the face of the Nagarapalika framework, which explicitly advocates for local self-government,' he said. Echoing his concerns, Kathyayini Chamaraj, civic activist, emphasised that the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) had already been stripped of substantial powers and that the GBG Act further reduces local officials to an advisory role, weakening accountability and grassroots governance. Satyajit Arikutharam, former Chief Technical Advisor at DULT, warned that opaque infrastructure decisions—such as a car-only underground tunnel—highlight the risk of elite-centric planning under the new regime. 'Future generations will bear the financial burden of projects that serve a privileged few,' he said. While Mr. Raghunandan advocated for the division of Bengaluru into smaller administrative units to aid decentralisation, Ms. Chamaraj warned this could lead to financial inequality between zones. 'Prosperous areas like Mahadevapura would retain their revenues, leaving others underfunded,' she cautioned. CIVIC plans to legally challenge the Act to restore democratic and accountable governance to the city.
