Fwd: [HasiruUsiru] People are last to know about projects benefiting them
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Sujit Patwardhan
Jan 16, 2018, 4:05:17 AM1/16/18
to PTTF General
Thanks Vinay Baindur for sharing this.
The article shows how "transparency, public consultation and involving the citizens in the planning process" merely remain empty promises while the decision makers, planners and builders of infrastructure stick to their original (and often faulty) blueprints.
Nowhere is this seen more starkly than in the various Metro Rail projects coming up all over the country.
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Sujit
People are last to know about projects benefiting them
, ET Bureau|
Updated: Jan 08, 2018, 03.42 PM IST
Although there is a law that mandates public consultation in the planning, designing and building of any public utility, the people — whom it is supposed to benefit — are almost always the last to know about them. Even when they are consulted, the motions are usually a ritual. That could, however, have changed after an unprecedented show of dissent against the now-scrapped steel flyover project. Although more and more communities are demanding a say in the planning process, the government appears not to have learnt any lesson, finds out Naveen Menezes
When Namma Metro quietly changed its alignment at Bengaluru Cantonment, the people who were going to use the service were the last to know about it. And when they did, there was opposition. Understandably so.
For their voices to be heard, they even pooled resources to create a platform — citizens' round table — for a consultation with the metro authorities. The event coincided with the Pune Metro's public consultation programme in October. While the Pune Metro authorities took the initiative to discuss the alignment with its users, Bengaluru Metro officials did not even attend the citizens' round table, let alone hold a public consultation themselves.
The approach of Pune Metro and Namma Metro did make a lot of buzz on the social media.
The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) is not the only state-run organisation that has a minimal record of public consultation. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which implements projects worth Rs 10,000 crore each year, is also allergic to collecting public feedback before implementing any project.
Be it the multi-crore project of whitetopping roads, the costly tender SURE project or the ongoing signal-free corridor project, public consultation was never part of the bureaucratic process. Now, the municipal corporation has ventured to construct grade separators (flyovers) on 13 roads and build skywalks on 150 roads in the city. Neither the project plan nor their locations are in the public domain.
To cite the most recent example, the Rs 50-crore steel flyover project at Shivananda Circle sums up BBMP's approach towards public consultation. The local residents opposed the flyover stating the project would be of no help unless the railway under-bridge located close by is also widened. Their demand seems genuine as the under-bridge will continue to be a traffic bottleneck even after the flyover comes up. The BBMP has gone ahead with the project without paying heed to the suggestions.
WHY A DIALOGUE MATTERS?
"Public involvement in decision-making is fundamental as it guarantees financial, economic, ecological and social viability of public projects — be they mega, medium or small," said Leo Saldanha, who has opposed several projects that did not go through a public consultation process.
According to law, public involvement is not an option but an important component of urban planning and infrastructure development. The section 29-34 of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning (KTCP) Act, 1961, mandates public involvement from conceptualisation, development and finalisation of the project.
Revathy Ashok, CEO, Bengaluru Political Action Committee (B.PAC), said the government should view public consultation as an opportunity to go back to people. "Ideally, documents, data and expert opinion related to projects should be put up in the public domain. All of this does not happen though it's a complex process," she said.
The Karnataka High Court, in its order on November 2010, also reminded the government that public consultation is must in planning and building the metro or any infrastructure project after hearing a petition filed by the Environment Support Group against the construction of the southern reach of Bangalore Metro in gross violation of the KTCP Act, 1961.
The court had also directed the competent authority to follow the procedural mandate depicted in Section 14-A of the KTCP Act in case of making a town planning scheme. It mandates that the project be made public, inviting objections from the public within a period of not less than 15 days from the date of publication.
Pradeep Singh Kharola, former BMRCL MD, admits that public consultation had helped the utility come out with better work. "The designs of metro alignment at Jayadeva Institute, RV Road and Pottery Town were changed several times keeping in mind people's demand and our requirement. It was time-consuming but our efforts paid off," he says.
Kharola, however, refused to talk about the controversial change in alignment at Cantonment station. "It's a matter of Rs 1,000 crore. Do you know how difficult it is to raise such a huge amount of money?" he asked.
Residents argue that Rs 1,000 crore is not big for a project that would last a hundred years. "The first phase of metro was proposed at a cost of Rs 8,000 crore but it nearly doubled when the entire project was ready. Similarly, the Rs 26,000-crore Phase II will not cost anything less than Rs 40,000 crore once completed because it's already delayed by three years," Rajkumar Dugar, a resident of Vasanthnagar, said.
CITIZEN ACTIVISM
The demand for public involvement in planning a project is increasing. Though Bengaluru has a history of strong civic activism with several proposals being dropped, it gained momentum after citizens spearheaded a campaign against the Rs 1,800-crore steel flyover project in 2016. It also gave birth to Citizens for Bengaluru, a collective.
Public outcry over common zoning regulations that primarily allowed commercialisation of residential areas, Akrama Sakrama (regularisation of building violations) and the 83-km elevated corridor also forced the state government to rethink. Many of the projects have also been stayed by courts.
But there have been also cases where the government has gone ahead with the projects despite public opposition. Instances are the underpass at Tagore Circle in Basavanagudi, the one at Cauvery theatre junction and the flyover at the National College junction, also in Basavanagudi.
These instances of difference in approach that the government takes either to cancel or go ahead with the projects largely depend on how strong and sustainable the opposition has been.
ONE PROJECT, TWO SIDES
The other challenge for public consultation is two or several dissenting opinions on a project. The ?208-crore flyover project from Ejipura Main Road to Hosur Road (2.4 km) in Koramangala is one such instance. The residents are divided whether to have or not to have the flyover.
Nithin Seshadri, president of Koramangala Residents' Welfare Association, said the flyover project was entirely a result of thorough public consultation. "The BBMP shared the drawing. Changes were made as suggested by citizens. It's possible to convince the BBMP with active citizenry but people should not take an uncalibrated stand," he said.
The project is opposed by some like Prashanth Sreenivasa who calls it unnecessary. "A one-way loop would have solved the problem," he said. Similar experiments were tried without the desired results, he said. Vidya Narasimhan, who lives in Koramangala 4th Block, is worried that 200-odd trees will go for an "absurd" project.
Contradictory views on infrastructure projects had come to the fore even in the past. When the multi-crore steel flyover project was opposed, North Bengaluru residents supported it, claiming the project would cut their travel time. Similarly, the BMRCL found support from two apartments near Benson Town that were to be razed in case the original alignment of the metro is maintained at Cantonment station.
"No government wants to create a controversy. When a project is proposed, its merit and technical feasibility is studied. We cannot go by people's opinion because they vary from one person to the other. We are always open to public suggestions," Mahendra Jain, who heads BMRCL and Urban Development Department said.
But citizens beg to differ. "Ward committees are supposed to be a step closer to decentralising governance. But there is a clear attempt to weaken the institution. The BBMP has colluded with councillors and friends and relatives of elected representatives are being included in the committees. What point does it serve?" Narendra Kumar, a citizen activist, said.
"If government really wants to ensure equity and justice reaches all, it must ensure that meaningful and democratic public involvement in decision-making becomes the life breath of its public administration processes," Leo Saldanha says. "Anything else is merely a ritual."
Noting that government agencies and corporates view public involvement with suspicion, he pointed out: "There is a dogmatic belief that the government always works in the public interest, which is not true anymore given the extensive and intensive collusion of profiteering companies influencing key decisions. It's no wonder that we have an extensive range of scams."
V Ravichandar, civic evangelist and member of BBMP restructuring committee, believes that sustained campaigns and public involvement are the answer. "Acceptance to hold public consultation shows government's willingness to be more transparent. But the government prefers to be opaque. Citizen activism is the hope. It's getting better as compared to the past. It should be best in the future," he said.
When Namma Metro quietly changed its alignment at Bengaluru Cantonment, the people who were going to use the service were the last to know about it. And when they did, there was opposition. Understandably so.
For their voices to be heard, they even pooled resources to create a platform — citizens' round table — for a consultation with the metro authorities. The event coincided with the Pune Metro's public consultation programme in October. While the Pune Metro authorities took the initiative to discuss the alignment with its users, Bengaluru Metro officials did not even attend the citizens' round table, let alone hold a public consultation themselves.
The approach of Pune Metro and Namma Metro did make a lot of buzz on the social media.
The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) is not the only state-run organisation that has a minimal record of public consultation. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which implements projects worth Rs 10,000 crore each year, is also allergic to collecting public feedback before implementing any project.
Be it the multi-crore project of whitetopping roads, the costly tender SURE project or the ongoing signal-free corridor project, public consultation was never part of the bureaucratic process. Now, the municipal corporation has ventured to construct grade separators (flyovers) on 13 roads and build skywalks on 150 roads in the city. Neither the project plan nor their locations are in the public domain.
To cite the most recent example, the Rs 50-crore steel flyover project at Shivananda Circle sums up BBMP's approach towards public consultation. The local residents opposed the flyover stating the project would be of no help unless the railway under-bridge located close by is also widened. Their demand seems genuine as the under-bridge will continue to be a traffic bottleneck even after the flyover comes up. The BBMP has gone ahead with the project without paying heed to the suggestions.
WHY A DIALOGUE MATTERS?
"Public involvement in decision-making is fundamental as it guarantees financial, economic, ecological and social viability of public projects — be they mega, medium or small," said Leo Saldanha, who has opposed several projects that did not go through a public consultation process.
According to law, public involvement is not an option but an important component of urban planning and infrastructure development. The section 29-34 of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning (KTCP) Act, 1961, mandates public involvement from conceptualisation, development and finalisation of the project.
Revathy Ashok, CEO, Bengaluru Political Action Committee (B.PAC), said the government should view public consultation as an opportunity to go back to people. "Ideally, documents, data and expert opinion related to projects should be put up in the public domain. All of this does not happen though it's a complex process," she said.
The Karnataka High Court, in its order on November 2010, also reminded the government that public consultation is must in planning and building the metro or any infrastructure project after hearing a petition filed by the Environment Support Group against the construction of the southern reach of Bangalore Metro in gross violation of the KTCP Act, 1961.
The court had also directed the competent authority to follow the procedural mandate depicted in Section 14-A of the KTCP Act in case of making a town planning scheme. It mandates that the project be made public, inviting objections from the public within a period of not less than 15 days from the date of publication.
Pradeep Singh Kharola, former BMRCL MD, admits that public consultation had helped the utility come out with better work. "The designs of metro alignment at Jayadeva Institute, RV Road and Pottery Town were changed several times keeping in mind people's demand and our requirement. It was time-consuming but our efforts paid off," he says.
Kharola, however, refused to talk about the controversial change in alignment at Cantonment station. "It's a matter of Rs 1,000 crore. Do you know how difficult it is to raise such a huge amount of money?" he asked.
Residents argue that Rs 1,000 crore is not big for a project that would last a hundred years. "The first phase of metro was proposed at a cost of Rs 8,000 crore but it nearly doubled when the entire project was ready. Similarly, the Rs 26,000-crore Phase II will not cost anything less than Rs 40,000 crore once completed because it's already delayed by three years," Rajkumar Dugar, a resident of Vasanthnagar, said.
CITIZEN ACTIVISM
The demand for public involvement in planning a project is increasing. Though Bengaluru has a history of strong civic activism with several proposals being dropped, it gained momentum after citizens spearheaded a campaign against the Rs 1,800-crore steel flyover project in 2016. It also gave birth to Citizens for Bengaluru, a collective.
Public outcry over common zoning regulations that primarily allowed commercialisation of residential areas, Akrama Sakrama (regularisation of building violations) and the 83-km elevated corridor also forced the state government to rethink. Many of the projects have also been stayed by courts.
But there have been also cases where the government has gone ahead with the projects despite public opposition. Instances are the underpass at Tagore Circle in Basavanagudi, the one at Cauvery theatre junction and the flyover at the National College junction, also in Basavanagudi.
These instances of difference in approach that the government takes either to cancel or go ahead with the projects largely depend on how strong and sustainable the opposition has been.
ONE PROJECT, TWO SIDES
The other challenge for public consultation is two or several dissenting opinions on a project. The ?208-crore flyover project from Ejipura Main Road to Hosur Road (2.4 km) in Koramangala is one such instance. The residents are divided whether to have or not to have the flyover.
Nithin Seshadri, president of Koramangala Residents' Welfare Association, said the flyover project was entirely a result of thorough public consultation. "The BBMP shared the drawing. Changes were made as suggested by citizens. It's possible to convince the BBMP with active citizenry but people should not take an uncalibrated stand," he said.
The project is opposed by some like Prashanth Sreenivasa who calls it unnecessary. "A one-way loop would have solved the problem," he said. Similar experiments were tried without the desired results, he said. Vidya Narasimhan, who lives in Koramangala 4th Block, is worried that 200-odd trees will go for an "absurd" project.
Contradictory views on infrastructure projects had come to the fore even in the past. When the multi-crore steel flyover project was opposed, North Bengaluru residents supported it, claiming the project would cut their travel time. Similarly, the BMRCL found support from two apartments near Benson Town that were to be razed in case the original alignment of the metro is maintained at Cantonment station.
"No government wants to create a controversy. When a project is proposed, its merit and technical feasibility is studied. We cannot go by people's opinion because they vary from one person to the other. We are always open to public suggestions," Mahendra Jain, who heads BMRCL and Urban Development Department said.
But citizens beg to differ. "Ward committees are supposed to be a step closer to decentralising governance. But there is a clear attempt to weaken the institution. The BBMP has colluded with councillors and friends and relatives of elected representatives are being included in the committees. What point does it serve?" Narendra Kumar, a citizen activist, said.
"If government really wants to ensure equity and justice reaches all, it must ensure that meaningful and democratic public involvement in decision-making becomes the life breath of its public administration processes," Leo Saldanha says. "Anything else is merely a ritual."
Noting that government agencies and corporates view public involvement with suspicion, he pointed out: "There is a dogmatic belief that the government always works in the public interest, which is not true anymore given the extensive and intensive collusion of profiteering companies influencing key decisions. It's no wonder that we have an extensive range of scams."
V Ravichandar, civic evangelist and member of BBMP restructuring committee, believes that sustained campaigns and public involvement are the answer. "Acceptance to hold public consultation shows government's willingness to be more transparent. But the government prefers to be opaque. Citizen activism is the hope. It's getting better as compared to the past. It should be best in the future," he said.
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Parisar
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Sujit Patwardhan
patwardh...@gmail.com
su...@parisar.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yamuna, ICS Colony, Ganeshkhind Road, Pune 411 007, India
Tel: +91 20 25537955
Cell: +91 98220 26627
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Sujit Patwardhan
patwardh...@gmail.com
su...@parisar.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yamuna, ICS Colony, Ganeshkhind Road, Pune 411 007, India
Tel: +91 20 25537955
Cell: +91 98220 26627
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Parisar: www.parisar.org
Mudra: www.mudraweb.com
Behance Page: https://www.behance.net/mudraweb
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