The state government, which had initially released special grants only for assembly constituencies represented by BJP MLAs, has softened its stand by allocating funds for all the 28 assembly segments in Bengaluru.
The allocation has been revised to Rs 3,661 crore, up from Rs 2,718 crore. The funds are part of the Rs 6,000-crore grants promised by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai last August.
The Rs 2,718 crore was first allocated for 15 constituencies represented by BJP MLAs. This worked out to about Rs 181 crore per constituency. The additional funds of Rs 943 crore have now been given to 13 constituencies, most of which are represented by the Congress party. The per-constituency grant works out to about Rs 72 crore, although it’s not clear which constituency has got how much because the Urban Development Department (UDD) issued the order only on February 25.
On February 25 this year, the government had allocated special grants only to the BJP MLAs, eliciting protests from Congress MLAs who asked the Chief Minister’s Office to provide grants for all constituencies.
Going by the allocations, Chief Minister appears to have been particularly generous to constituencies such as Mahadevapura (Rs 208 crore), RR Nagar (Rs 208 crore), Bommanahalli (Rs 207 crore), KR Puram (Rs 207 crore), Bengaluru South (Rs 206 crore) and Yeshwanthpur (Rs 202 crore). All of them have BJP MLAs.
Other BJP-held assembly segments such as Padmanabhanagar, Govindarajanagar, Yelahanka, Malleswaram, Mahalakshmi Layout, Rajajinagar and CV Raman Nagar have received anywhere between Rs 150 crore and Rs 200 crore each.
Senior government officials confirmed that grants have also been set aside for constituencies represented by Congress and the JD(S) but did not share details.
The UDD has directed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to prepare an action plan within 15 days detailing the works and cost estimates. It directed the BBMP engineers to consult local MLAs before finalising the action plan.
It is learnt that only works that come within the BBMP’s ambit, such as road development, grade separators, lakes, stormwater drains, parks and solid waste management, would be part of the action plan. The UDD has suggested that the funds be equally distributed between major works and ward works.
The Congress’ Byatarayanapura MLA Krishna Byre Gowda accused the government of “playing politics at people’s cost”. “My constituency has received only Rs 75 crore though it’s three times as big as most other assembly segments. It’s people who suffer due to poor infrastructure. The government should not be partisan,” he said.
Sources said Dasarahalli, represented by the JD(S), had been given Rs 110 crore. All Congress-held constituencies have been anywhere between Rs 50 crore and Rs 100 crore.