Clean-up of Bengaluru should start with stronger ward committees\, say citizens

Bengalur

Clean-up of Bengaluru should start with stronger ward committees, say citizens

Activists say the only solution to Bengaluru’s civic issues, such as indiscriminate dumping of garbage, is tackling them at the local level through ward committees.

Activists say the only solution to Bengaluru’s civic issues, such as indiscriminate dumping of garbage, is tackling them at the local level through ward committees.   | Photo Credit: Sampath Kumar G.P.

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Today is the deadline set for the civic body by the High Court of Karnataka to clean up Bengaluru, but are all our roads free of garbage? Have potholes vanished? Have footpaths become available to pedestrians? The answer is no. Unsurprisingly, in the backdrop of recent events, the demand for empowering ward committees is growing louder.

According to civic activists, a one-time mega clean-up will not ensure that Bengaluru remains clean forever. They say the only solution to the city’s mounting civic issues is tackling the problem at the local level through ward committees, which need to meet every month. While ward committees have been instituted according to a court order, there is very little action on the ground, with many not holding regular meetings.

With this in mind, Citizens for Bengaluru (CfB) has started a ‘Call your Corporator’ campaign. Members are reaching out to all 198 ward councillors, asking them to get the committees, which they head, up and running. “There is an urgent need for local governance. It is impossible to run a city the size of Bengaluru from one office on Hudson Circle. The head office cannot know and understand the issues in the 198 wards. This is where ward committees come into play. They are the lowest units of governance, and if these committees meet every month, as they are supposed to, a lot of the problems can be tackled,” said Srinivas Alavilli, a member of CfB. He added that the activists have reached out to more than 35 corporators.

CfB volunteers also met with Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun earlier this month to appeal to her to start the monthly meeting in all 198 wards on a fixed day. “We have suggested the first Saturday of every month. We would also like to see the Mayor leading the charge by starting these meetings in her ward,” Mr. Alavilli said.

Kathyayini Chamaraj, a member of the Shanthinagar ward committee and of the not-for-profit CIVIC, welcomed the citizens’ initiative.

Her organisation has been trying to get the BBMP to make the ward committees functional. CIVIC members had even conducted training for ward committee members on their roles and responsibilities this year, but not many corporators have been cooperative. “Now that citizens, under the banner of CfB, are exerting pressure on the BBMP, there is some hope for ward committees,” she said.

The Mayor said she would speak to all councillors to ensure that ward committee meetings are held every month. “It has come to my notice that in some wards, the committee has not been meeting once a month. I will speak to the councillor(s) and tell that it is mandatory under the law. I will also be asking them to send me reports of the meetings henceforth,” Ms. Mallikarjun said.