BCC announces projects, forgets them

BANGALORE: The Bangalore City Corporation has amnesia. Budget after budget, it announces projects after projects. And now, it’s time for one more budget and some more announcements.
Take for instance, the 2003 budget. It announced many feel-good schemes, like integrated development of 21 traffic corridors, construction of 100 public toilets, providing funds for self-employment schemes, development of 100 more parks, establishing day-care centres for senior citizens, and laying and asphalting of 1,500 km of roads.
While several projects have been forgotten after the budget presentation, the preliminary work on a few projects has just commenced with political bigwigs laying foundation stones.
Just last week, that is almost one year after making the announcement, the BCC council approved road widening works for the integrated development of 21 traffic corridors.
The BCC has prepared the project report to take up the development of northern corridor — the 7.1-km stretch from Hebbal junction to Minsk square which includes six-laning. If it took BCC one year to take a small step forward, how long would it take to translate this project report into action? That is even beyond BCC’s guess!
And the less said about the proposed day-care centres for senior citizens the better. Not a mention has been made of this project after the budget presentation.
Similar is the fate of Branding of Bangalore, a project entrusted to the PR department which envisaged setting up a shop in the Public Utility Building to promote tourism by selling books and products having the Bangalore emblem.
The much-talked about mapping of properties through GIS will finally see the light of day in the coming months. The ‘coming months’ could mean anything — from March this year to March next year.
Here is another example of BCC’s forgetfulness. To implement 10 pedestrian subways on a fast track basis, the BCC had planned to outsource the work. The status of the project: last week, the BCC council approved resolutions to commence work on the subways.
Same is the status of the grade separators. Last week, the council gave its nod to take up flyovers and underpasses at Modi Hospital junction, Chord Road-Mysore Road junction, Yeshwantpur circle and South End circle.
However, there is a silver lining. On the lines of Nirmala Bangalore scheme, the BCC has built 50 toilets, out of the 100 promised. Work on the Central Park is being hastened up by finalising the concepts. Of the 1,500 km asphalting of sub-arterial roads, 1,000 km has been taken up and work began on February 3.