K'taka govt sets deadline to fill potholes in Bengaluru amid backlash by IT industry

Bengaluru, Sep 18 (IANS) After the backlash by IT industry leaders over poor condition of roads in Bengaluru, the Congress-led government in Karnataka has set a deadline to fill potholes in the IT city.

Responding to the development of Co-Founder and CEO of a well-known company moving out of Bengaluru over poor road infrastructure, the leaders of the IT industry on Wednesday had raised concern and appealed the Congress-led government in Karnataka to address the situation with proactive measures.

Stating that a deadline has been set to fill the potholes in Bengaluru, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, while speaking to reporters at Vidhana Soudha, said on Thursday that he would not evade responsibility.

Shivakumar said, "It is natural for roads to have potholes during rainy season and we have given a deadline to fill them. We have also instructed MLAs to use the grants to fill the potholes."

Asked why pothole issue persists even after spending thousands of crores, he said, "We have given a deadline and allocated responsibilities to officials. There have been many potholes around Vidhana Soudha due to overnight rains yesterday and it is natural. We are working to fix this issue. The issue will not be resolved just because some people tweet about it and some people issue media statements."

Asked about union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy's social media post that the Deputy Chief Minister is scaring IT companies and start-ups from Bengaluru due to potholes, Shivakumar said, "What is Kumaraswamy's contribution to Bengaluru as a Union Minister? The UPA government had given a lot of funds to Bengaluru under the Jawaharalal urban renewal mission. He is the right-hand man of the PM, why can't he get Rs 10,000 crores for Bengaluru city?"

"Union Minister Kumaraswamy had said that he would get approvals for Mekedatu project in five minutes, what happened to it? Why hasn't he got approval for Mahadayi project? He calls himself son of the soil, why is he not commenting against Maharashtra's threat that it would move Supreme Court opposing Upper Krishna Project? Issues won't be resolved by tweeting."

Replying to a query on Andhra Pradesh Minister Nara Lokesh writing a letter to invite companies to Andhra Pradesh, Shivakumar said, "They don't have businesses there and hence they are calling. Why did the PM call Bengaluru a global city? All those who benefit from Bengaluru will stay here. Why are global companies in Bengaluru? Bengaluru has 25 lakh engineers while California has 13 lakh engineers. More than two lakh foreigners are working in Bengaluru. Bengaluru offers excellent talent and system."

Asked if the Union government was deliberately neglecting Bengaluru, he said, "Certainly, the Union government has not given a single rupee for Bengaluru's development."

Asked if department's would face funds crunch due to allocation of funds to Upper Krishna project, he said, "This is completely false, there is no such proposal. We are committed to complete this project. The Centre should not succumb to pressure from any state on Upper Krishna project."

--IANS

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