Corporators, watch out! BBMP meets to be live-streamed

Corporators, better watch out. People will soon be able to catch live the proceedings of the BBMP's monthly council meetings on the civic body's website or Facebook. 

The BBMP is considering a proposal to live-stream the debates in its monthly meetings along the lines of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha proceedings. 

B M Vijay Shankar, special commissioner, BBMP, said the proposal followed a survey of Indian cities conducted by the NGO, Janaagraha. The proposal is yet to be approved by the mayor and the BBMP commissioner, he added. 

The council meetings at BBMP headquarters are attended by all the 198 corporators who raise the needs and demands of their constituents. The civic body also takes policy decisions at these meetings. The mayor, the deputy mayor and BBMP commissioner chair the meetings. 

In 2017, Mayor R Sampath Raj had introduced a 'pink hour' to enable women corporators to speak in the meetings. 

Corporators under watch 

Raj believes the live-streaming will help better engage people in decision-making. "Corporators are elected by people. It's important to let people know what their elected representatives discuss in these meetings. This way, people will get the complete picture, not bits and pieces. They will be able to make an informed decision about whom to vote for in the next elections." 

Simply put, corporators' behaviour will be under watch. "Corporators may think twice before making unwarranted disruptions because people will be watching them," the mayor said. 

When R Roshan Baig was the minister for information and public relations, the state cabinet had considered a proposal to launch a television channel to live-stream the proceedings of both the Houses of the legislature. It is yet to see the light of day.

The City of London, Ontario, Canada, live-streams the proceedings of its municipal meetings on a mobile phone app.