BDA fails to take up major schemes

At that time, after meeting expenditure, the BDA had a cash surplus of Rs 1,150 crore which had earned the authority an LAA+ credit rating (by the credit rating agency ICRA) without government guarantee. As surely as its coffers grew for six years (2000 to 2006), the BDA’s cash bubble has now burst: it has a meagre reserve of only Rs 500 crore.

Till recently a role model for other government agencies that lacked its drive for speedy implementation of projects, the BDA has failed to take up major infrastructure schemes like the two proposed layouts – the Rs 700-crore Peripheral Ring Road and the Rs 90-crore housing project for the economically weaker sections – and several grade separators in 2009-10.

Restoring lakes

Besides, it has been able to spend only Rs 15 crore on restoration and development of lakes, though the budgetary allocation was Rs 68 crore. A provision of Rs 387 crore was made for the development of its newly-formed layouts, but it could spend just Rs 142 crore. For reasons inexplicable, the budget document described the untilised money as the BDA’s “savings”.

According to government sources familiar with the BDA’s pathetic financial condition, the primary reason for its “sickness” is its inability to carve out and form new residential layouts over the last six years. The proposed Nadaprabhu Kempe Gowda and Shivarama Karantha layouts, which were estimated to have fetched the BDA Rs 1,486 crore, did not materialise. In contrast to the years between 2000 and 2004 when the Authority could distribute 66,000 sites, the BDA has not been able to distribute a single site to people in the last six years.

The economic slowdown also played spoilsport, preventing the BDA from raising money by site auctions. Against a Rs 485-crore revenue target it set through auctions, the Authority was able to garner only Rs 25 crore last fiscal.

Despite approaching bankruptcy, the BDA has set an ambitious revenue target of Rs 3,650.08 crore and chalked out an expenditure plan of Rs 3,643.64 crore for the current fiscal. It also expects Rs 2,433 crore in revenue from two layouts formations and land auction which, sources feared, might not materialise.

Back to bad old days

* BDA failed to form proposed two residential layouts
* Rs 700-cr Peripheral Ring Road project did not take off
* Rs 90-cr housing scheme for EWS did not materialise
* It spent just Rs 15 cr on restoration of lakes against
Rs 68-cr allocation
* Spent only Rs 467 cr for Bangalore infrastructure, including several grade separators, against allocation of Rs 1,136.73 cr
* Failed to release Rs 77.50 cr to BBMP and BWSSB for road widening, water supply and sanitation projects
* Cash surplus shrinks