Panel wants Rs. 5,000 cr a year to be spent on Bengaluru infra.

The three-member Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Restructuring Committee has recommended infrastructure spend of about Rs. 5,000 crore a year for Bengaluru.

The city collected about Rs. 1,25,000 crore from taxes and user fees (Central taxes at about Rs. 80,000 crore and the rest from State and local levies) in 2014-15. About Rs. 18,000 crore was spent on Bengaluru across all civic agencies and government departments last year. Of this, about Rs. 5,700 crore was capital expenditure.

The Karnataka ICT group (under IT/BT) has estimated that Bengaluru needs about Rs. 2.25 lakh crore over 12 years – about Rs. 20,000 crore a year of capital infusion.

Siddaiah, retired IAS officer and Restructuring Committee member, said, “We need to find resources (financial and human capital) to increase the infrastructure spend by about Rs. 5,000 crore a year through increased own revenues, collection efficiencies, new revenue sources, pooled finances, increased State grants, etc.”

'Our suggestions for improving the financial health revolve around four themes – Financial Sustainability, Fiscal Decentralisation, Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management, Transparency and Accountability,' he added.


HBL