Senior IAS officer Tushar Giri Nath assumed charge as the new chief commissioner of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Friday. Outgoing civic chief Gaurav Gupta handed the silver baton and the KMC Act to symbolically hand over charge to his successor.
Admitting there were many challenges to be met, Mr. Giri Nath said his focus areas would be being prepared to handle the fourth wave of COVID-19 pandemic, rain preparedness and coordination with other civic agencies. Here is what he had to say:
On priority areas: In the short-term, these would be to solve the problems caused by rains. Currently, even a short spell of rain is enough to bring the city to its knees. Preparing for the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, infrastructure improvement, solid waste management... a lot has been done already; but we still need to do more.
On improving roads, filling potholes: The pothole problem is a recurring one. We will work towards ensuring that all potholes in the city are filled.
On rain preparedness: The first challenge that needs to be tackled is to have a responsive local government. The grievances of citizens should not just decrease, but the redressal mechanism should also improve. For this, we need to improve infrastructure.
On coordination with other civic agencies: Coordination between the different civic agencies is very important. A committee has already been chaired by the Chief Secretary. That apart, we can maintain good coordination between the different agencies.
On improving administration: I have around 30 years of administrative experience. BBMP is like a local government. Each post comes with its own challenges, which we have to overcome to the best of our ability. We should take the local government closer to the people and we have to work with the citizens. However, nothing can be achieved overnight.
Long wait
The new chief commissioner had to wait for nearly two hours for Mr. Gupta to hand over charge to him. The handing over was initially fixed at 9.45 a.m. and later revised to 11 a.m. It was finally done at 12.30 p.m.
While he waited, he garlanded the statues and busts of Kempegowda, Lakshmidevi, B.R. Ambedkar, Dr. Rajkumar and Puneeth Rajkumar. With no sign of Mr. Gupta yet, he sat in the meeting hall and downed cups of coffee.
Mr. Gupta told The Hindu later that the time to hand over charge was fixed without his consent. “It should have been fixed at a mutually convenient time. However, the objective is to ensure a smooth transition,” he said and added, “There is no room for any controversy in this matter.”
What the outgoing civic chief had to say
“Bengaluru is a big city with complex problems. It requires continuity in administration. The first two months after assuming charge went in management of the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic. We had to ramp up health infrastructure to save lives. The following months went in intense vaccination drives. Bengaluru was the best performing metro during this period,” Mr. Gupta said.
The focus then shifted to road restoration as a number of roads were cut open by various agencies, especially the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB). The road restoration has now picked up pace and will mostly be 80% complete by the onset of monsoon, he added. The protracted rainy season deteriorated the road surface further. That apart, even approved works could not be taken up. These have now been expedited.
