Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said Thursday that Bengaluru will become “one of the best cities in the world” over the next two years as he unveiled ‘Bengaluru Mission 2022’, a new, ambitious programme to revamp the state capital.
The ‘Bengaluru Mission 2022’ will look at overhauling the city’s infrastructure. It is the government’s blueprint on how Bengaluru should be in 2022, when India will mark 75th year of Independence.
Speaking at the launch, Yediyurappa said the initiative will focus on four large areas: ease of transport, cleaner city, greener city and connecting citizens to the city's culture through museums and cultural centres.
“Budget has been allocated for all the works planned. We will conduct inspections once in six months and make sure that all the works planned are completed within the given timeframe," Yediyurappa said, asserting that the financial distress caused due to the Covid-19 pandemic would not get in the way of the city’s development.
Elaborating on the plans, BBMP administrator Gaurav Gupta said the government would take up development of 12 high-density corridors, adding up to 190 km, in coordination with the Karnataka Road Development Corporation Ltd (KRDCL). An annual maintenance contract would be given for 400 km of arterial roads. In addition, the government will promote shared electric vehicles and ensure operations of suburban rail within the next two years.
To ensure efficient waste management, the government will refurbish the existing waste processing plants, implement GPS-based monitoring of waste collection and rehabilitate legacy dump sites. Citizens will be encouraged to process wet waste in their homes and for this, learning centres will be established in different wards and zones.
The government will repurpose lands of public sector undertakings to develop new urban lung spaces, apart from launching two mega tree parks in the city, with each one spanning across a 400-acre area. The existing mini forests in J P Nagar, Turahalli, Kadugodi and Mathikere will also be developed into popular destinations, Gupta added.
In an effort to make citizen services easily accessible, the BBMP’s Sahaya portal will be redesigned as a one-stop platform for grievance redressal.
The government will also establish a Bengaluru Culture, Heritage and Crafts Museum at NGEF. “This is an effort to get the huge migrant population residing in the city acquainted with the state's culture,” Gupta said.