Karnataka Dy Cm Shivakumar declares that the formation of the authority of the Grand Bengaluru and five municipal bodies is “historic”

The Chief Minister of Karnataka, DK Shivakumar, announced Tuesday, September 2, the creation of Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and five municipal companies bearing the name of the city, calling it “historic decision” to decentralize governance and accelerate development.

“Today is a special day when the five GBA companies bearing the name of Bengaluru have emerged,” Shivakumar told journalists.

The new companies are central Bengaluru, Bengaluru North, Bengaluru South, Bengaluru East and Bengaluru West. “We have not given any of them the name of individuals,” he said.

Shivakumar said that the commissioners of each company would immediately take orders and begin to directly receive income.

The government has filed an oath to the Supreme Court indicating that the final notification on the reorganization of the districts will be issued by November 1, 2025, with a judicial hearing fixed for November 3. The reservation of the districts will be completed by November 30, after which the State Electoral Commission will announce the dates of the ballot, he said.

The GBA will be chaired by the chief minister, the Minister in charge of the Bengaluru district acting as vice-president.

Each company will have agents of the IAS acting as an additional commissioner and commissioner, an officer of the Administrative Service of Karnataka (KAS) as a joint commissioner and a chief engineer.

Structural changes include an increase in the number of divisions from 27 to 50, subdivisions from 75 to 150 and a ceiling of 150 districts per corporation. Assuming 100 seats per society, the reorganization will create 500 new elected representatives, half of whom are women, said Shivakumar.

“All taxes will go directly to the companies concerned so that no one can question them,” he said, adding that GBA would manage major projects while ensuring the consultation of local bodies.

The company’s buildings will wear a new logo, land will be identified for new offices, the mayors will exercise a mandate of two years and six months and GBA meetings will take place once every three months, he added.

Recalling the history of the proposal, Shivakumar said that nine reports had been submitted between 2014 and 2019. In 2015, a decision was made to create three companies, but the plan was withdrawn in 2019 after failing to obtain the Governor’s approval.

“Today, in 2025, the GBA was finally born,” he said. Pti