murali772 - 5 June, 2012 | Civic amenities | Bangalore | Media Reports | governance | City development

The cash-strapped Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will also set up shop at GIM venue to attract investors for 12 projects like managing the city's garbage and building skywalks. The civic body proposes to execute the projects, worth Rs 1,000 crore, under the public private partnership (PPP) model. - - - BBMP commissioner M K Shankarlingegowda has written a letter about the civic body's initiative to the state government. He writes that pre-feasibility studies for the projects have been initiated and would be made available to all prospective bidders.

Here are the 12 projects proposed by the BBMP:
1. A garbage collection and management project, worth Rs 50 crore. The civic body is yet to identify the location to implement the project.
2. Another waste management project covering Moore Market, Johnson Market and Mahalakshmi Layout Market, worth Rs 15 crore.
3. A Rs 250 crore project to develop sky walks across the city.
4. Development of additional facilities on the second floor of KR Market, worth Rs 4 crore
5. Operation and maintenance of various components at Freedom Park.
6. Integrated waste management plant with energy generation in South Bangalore, worth Rs 200 crore. BBMP will provide land for the project.
7. A Rs 250 crore project to convert waste to energy through large scale water-based segregation followed by anaerobic digestion at Kanahalli, near Magadi Road.
8. A Rs 50 crore project to convert municipal solid waste into grade 2 low sulphur diesel (aviation fuel, jet fuel and diesel for automotive usage). The BBMP will provide 1 acre land.
9. A Rs 30 crore project to convert methane into grade 2 diesel, for which 1 acre land will be provided by the BBMP.
10. Construction of abattoirs in North Bangalore at a cost of Rs 150 crore. The BBMP will provide 40 acres land.
11. Construction of 500 public toilets in city at a cost of Rs 50 crore.
12. Construction of 200 bus shelters, worth Rs 8 crore

For the full report in the Bangalore Mirror, click here.
 
These are apparently in addition to the pledging of the Public Utility Building and the Jayanagar Shopping Complex to raise a loan of Rs 1,000-crore.

Well, PPP's are the way to go for the future, and pledging of properties to raise funds are normal practices the world over. And, most of the projects seem to make sense, from whatever little is known of them now (of course, the devil is in the details). So, there is nothing too wrong with this move of the BBMP. But, the problem is BBMP's abysmal track record in project detailing, execution, and financial management. As such, the important question is how to set that right, first.

The above apart, since many of these projects impact the visual appeal of the city, shouldn't the BBMP start involving institutions like the Lalit Kala Academy, Urban Arts Commission, Bangalore Environment Trust, Namma Bengaluru Foundation, etc functioning in the city, apart from numerous environment protection groups, on the lines of New York city's Design Trust (check this)?

Muralidhar Rao

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