Focusing on the greater devolution of authority and achieving financial discipline, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Saturday presented its annual Budget for the financial year 2021-22 with an outlay of Rs 9,287.81 crore. This is the first Budget since the enactment of new BBMP Act 2020 to govern Bengaluru.
Presenting the Budget, BBMP’s Special Commissioner (Finance) Thulasi Maddineni, in presence of BBMP Administrator Gaurav Gupta and Commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad, said, “Amidst intimidating liabilities worth Rs 10,000 crore, we have taken several difficult decisions with an aim of achieving financial discipline in this fiscal. Our goal is that over a period of time, the liability of BBMP at any point does not exceed 2.5 times the fiscal space available for taking up such works.”
Paving way for active involvement of citizens in the administration process for the first time, BBMP has proposed to devolve about Rs 2,000 crore to the zones for disbursement in lieu of various citizen services and works undertaken at the zonal level. This would be accompanied with adequate budgetary controls.
Management of solid waste being the key area, the BBMP has allocated a whopping Rs 1,622.23 crore, the highest allocation for any services in the Budget. This apart, about Rs 1,000 crore has been set aside for restoration of 291 roads that were dug up for BWSSB’s water and sanitary line works. Similarly, an allocation of Rs 546.89 crore has been made to take up various social welfare activities.
Thulasi, in her Budget speech, stated that the state government has provided grants worth Rs 3,000 crore which is more than the funds released last year for the development of the city. In his opening remarks, Manjunatha Prasad said, “Citizens of Bengaluru have a relationship with the Palike from birth to death. Our aim is to make this Budget citizen-friendly. In the earlier budgets we did not focus on allocating funds for maintenance, but this year's budget will focus on maintenance of services and infrastructure".
BBMP administrator Gaurav Gupta said, “The state government has provided Rs 785.86 crore towards salary, street-light electrical charges and untied grants. Further, under the 15th Finance Commission, a grant Rs 421 crore has been provided by Government of India and the works will be taken up as per scheme guidelines.”