Gallery might be the casualty in expanded BBMP council

Seats for 198 corporators, various department officials, nominated members and the media would leave no space for the public.

Going by the BBMP’s plan to expand and upgrade the interiors, the Council hall will now have two divisions. One division will be at the floor level for the corporators, MLAs and MLCs and the other at the gallery level for the officers, the media and the rest, space permitting, for the general public.

According to the anticipated numbers, the Council Floor will hold a maximum of 268 people during a single session. The existing plan of the Palike Council Hall will now be revised from 142 to 198 along with 73 other MLAs and MLCs, apart from the nominated councillors.

The seating capacity for officials has been reduced to 30 from the existing 50 seats. Mediamen will have only 15 seats during each of the council sessions. As Palike officials scramble to renovate and upgrade the council hall to add more seats and tables, the cost and space to accommodate nearly 350 persons in the single room will be a daunting task.

Redundant renovation

Following the previous, now redundant, renovation, the hall was to hold 147 corporators. The cost estimate at that time was Rs 2 crore. After the renovation now underway, the Council Hall will add another Rs 20 lakh to the cost incurred to add more seats and tables for the corporators. This is apart from the provisions of adding more lights, wall paneling and false ceiling for a small extended portion of the hall. Even the usage of power for air conditioning will go up with the renovated project to have 50 ton of air conditioning capacity.

The delimitation of wards will also put added pressure on the existing BBMP budget. The new wards will now have to house a Palike office for the new areas. “The decision to set up new offices will be looked into as and when the elections are conducted. There will be pressure but it has to be done,” said a Palike official.

Principal Secretary, Urban Development, U Thangaraj told Deccan Herald that while there is a huge anticipated jump in the cost to be incurred for accommodating the corporators and new authorities, it is a much needed one for Bangalore’s development.

“Yes, we will need more personnel for the administration with the increase in wards. But it will not be much as we are moving towards more technological help to assist in efficient administration,” he said.

The Government has stated that with more allocations made to the Palike budget this year, it will be able to compensate for the extra cost to be incurred due to the increase in wards and their maintenance.