Newly-elected MLC Manjunath Bhandary said here on Tuesday that the objective of Mangaluru Smart City Mission has derailed as Mangaluru Smart City Ltd. (MSCL) has taken up projects contrary to the mission objective.
Speaking at a meeting presided over by Urban Development Minister B.A. Basavaraj to review urban development projects taken up by MSCL, Mangaluru City Corporation, Mangaluru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) and Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation (KUIDFC), the MLC said that the objective of the mission is to develop the Old Port and fisheries infrastructure to create employment opportunities and revenue generating activities and attract tourists.
But MSCL is engaged in developing roads, drains and footpaths which is against mission mandate, he said. In addition, it is spending money on building underpasses, bus stands, repairing school buildings and the like which is actually the task of the city corporation.
Is this the objective for which MSCL has been constituted? he asked.
Mr. Bhandary wanted to know whether the projects implemented by MSCL so far have been able to create employment opportunities and have resulted in creating revenue generating activities.
The MLC said that the funds allocated under the mission should have been used as seed money to attract investments. But contrary to it, MSCL is directly spending it on civic projects.
Quoting from the mission objectives of some cities in the country, he said that those cities have stuck to their objectives and have reserved funds as seed money.
Mr. Bhandary said that the Gujarat International Finance Tech City (GIFT City, Gandhinagar) was developed with an objective of ensuring financial trading which has been met. New Raipur Smart City, Chhattisgarh, was created with an objective of developing it as an educational hub and promoting trade and economics, IDA (Industrial Development Authority) Smart City, Gautama Buddha district, Uttar Pradesh, was developed to promote smart phone manufacturing units and food processing units, New Raigad Smart City in Maharashtra was promoted to promote health sector and education and Duolera Smart City, Ahmedabad, was created to promote pharmaceutical units.
But in Mangaluru, the objective has been diverted to take up projects meant to have been addressed by the civic body, the MLC said.
Moodbiri-Mulky MLA Umanath A. Kotian, however, defended the projects taken up by MSCL.
In-charge Managing Director of MSCL Prashant Kumar Mishra said that the objective of the mission is to develop transport hub.
Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra said that the objective has not been derailed.
The objective will be fulfilled when the waterfront project estimated to cost about ₹200 crore becomes a reality, Dr. Rajendra said.
