The ‘election year’ budget of the civic body, which governs 27 Assembly constituencies, turned out to be anticlimactic with few new projects being announced.
The BBMP promised to start generic medicine stores in all its hospitals and in Indira Canteens. However, it glossed over infrastructural needs and even recycled old or already-announced projects at a time the government has been criticised for drastically reducing allocations in its recent State Budget.
The budget focussed on social welfare, increased financial assistance for housing, and allocated ₹10 lakh for every ward for women’s welfare. While the budget has been praised for fiscal discipline, there is opposition to a dramatic increase in the Mayoral Discretionary Grants from ₹160 crore to ₹345.5 crore.
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