BBMP officials taken to task over stormwater drain work

In the wake of complaints related to poor maintenance of stormwater drains, Mayor G Padmavathi and councillors took BBMP’s Solid Waste Management (SWD) department to task on Tuesday at the civic body’s council meeting.

Mayor Padmavathi reminded SWD chief engineer Siddegowda of the debris being uncleared at many places, including Bommanahalli and Mahadevapura zones. “During my inspections in the past, the residents have complained about the drainage-related issues. When I or the other councillors try to contact, you (Siddegowda) do not pick up the call. You and other engineers from SWD department do not attend meetings either.”
Chairman of the Standing Committee on Taxation and Fina­nce M K Gunashekhar demanded Siddegowda to disclose details of the Rs 800-crore project to construct and maintain stormwater drains.

Approval awaited

“We are hoping to start the Rs 800-crore project by January and are awaiting approval for the works. About 150 km of stormwater drain stretch would be taken up for maintenance, desiltation and other works,” Siddegowda said.

He, however, failed to provide details on Detailed Project Report (DPR), feasibility report and other technical details of the project.

Opposition leader Padmanabha Reddy demanded an enquiry into the encroachment of stormwater drains by big builders and their nexus with Palike officials. Reddy said Palike has not been collecting property tax from government departments and companies.

“The tax dues run into crores. High court has tax dues of Rs 80 lakh, PWD has about Rs 18 lakh, Raj Bhavan has to pay Rs 6. 31 lakh, Police Department owes Rs 15 lakh and BDA office on Sankey Road owes Rs 2.32 lakh. Also, some schools are charging high fee, but are being exempted from tax,” Reddy said.

Commissioner Manjunatha Prasad said there is a confusion in section 110 of Karnataka Municipal Corporation (KMC) Act over the collection of service fee instead of property tax from temples, hospitals, state and Central government buildings. “A committee will be formed and a proposal will be sent to state government on making changes to section 110,” Prasad said.

Palmtops for officials

Palmtops, also called hand-held computers, will be given to 500 Palike revenue officers in the first phase. Each palmtop costs between Rs 6,000 and Rs 7,000. It enables officers to  access property tax details of all the mapped properties, Prasad said.  BBMP has developed a GIS system and mapped all properties, he said.