Study raises concerns over transparency in Bengaluru spending

Bengaluru: Over Rs 38,000 crore in public spending in the city remains largely invisible to citizens. This was the highlight of a discussion during the third session of the Bengaluru Debates in Bengaluru on Friday. The discussion turned the spotlight on concerns about transparency and accountability in urban governance.

The quarterly dialogue series, convened by the Bangalore International Centre (BIC) and Janaagraha, focused on the topic “Can radical transparency transform Bengaluru?”, specifically in improving governance outcomes. The discussion drew on a Janaagraha paper that attempts to map public spending in Bengaluru, noting the absence of any consolidated, publicly available account of how funds are allocated and used.

According to the study, an estimated Rs 38,000 crore, or over Rs 100 crore a day, was spent on Bengaluru in 2021-22. However, this figure had to be reconstructed from more than 70 documents across multiple agencies, underscoring the fragmented nature of financial disclosures.

The findings point to a structural imbalance: only about 20% of the expenditure is routed through the city government, while nearly 80% is handled by parastatal agencies such as the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB). These agencies, on average, disclose only around a third of their financial information and are often not legally mandated to provide detailed public accounts, the study stated.

Participants in the discussion — Abdul Wajid, president of the District Congress Committee and former councillor; Padmanabha Reddy, former councillor; and Meera K, co-founder and trustee of the Oorvani Foundation — pointed out that the lack of accessible and comprehensive data makes it difficult to assess whether persistent civic issues, including traffic congestion, water shortages and flooding, stem from inadequate funding, poor planning or weak implementation. The session was moderated by Srikanth Viswanathan, chief executive officer, Janaagraha.

The discussion also underscored that transparency alone may not suffice. Strengthening local institutions such as ward committees and enabling citizen participation were identified as equally critical to improving accountability. “Today, we are seeing increasing centralisation of power and limited clarity on how large sums of public money are being spent, even as everyday civic issues persist. While radical transparency is essential, it must go hand in hand with strengthening local self-governance and ensuring citizens have both the information and the voice to hold institutions accountable,” said Reddy, while Meera campaigned for data-driven transparency.