Bengaluru, May 6 (IANS) The Karnataka government has signed a Statement of Intent with the Institute for Sustainable Employment and Growth (ISEG) to prepare a comprehensive Economic Master Plan for Bengaluru and transform the city into a world-class hub.

Additional Chief Secretary of the Urban Development Department Tushar Giri Nath, and ISEG Director Shirish Sankhe exchanged signed documents in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar at an event organised in Vidhana Soudha.

Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar, who is also in charge of Bengaluru Development, said, “As Bengaluru city completes 500 years after its formation, we have been deliberating on formulating a comprehensive Economic Master Plan for the period 2032 to 2037. We have therefore decided to give Bengaluru a new form and renewed strength.”

“We have been making efforts for the past three years to make Bengaluru into a world-class hub. We have provided record levels of economic strength to Bengaluru and its surrounding areas over the last three years. The per capita income in the Bengaluru Metropolitan Area stands at $8,850 — double the state average,” he noted.

Bengaluru urban, rural, and southern districts together are spread over more than 8,000 square km, with a population of 16 million.

Bengaluru contributes 42 per cent of India’s software exports.

“A blueprint will provide directions on where to create employment, where tourism should be developed, where housing schemes should be introduced, and how traffic congestion should be addressed,” Shivakumar said.

“I have seen heavier traffic congestion in other cities of the country like Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata. I am not blaming them. We have formulated a plan on how to solve this problem,” he added.

“A plan worth nearly Rs 2 lakh crore has been drawn up and is being implemented in a phased manner,” he said.

“Instructions are being given to formulate a data-driven Economic Master Plan. This will not impose any financial burden on us. Opinions and suggestions will be sought from key citizens as well as sectors including energy, city corporations, water, urban development, information technology, and industries,” the Deputy Chief Minister added.

“We are giving new shape to the decision taken to make Bengaluru a world-class hub. Bengaluru will be prepared to compete with global cities,” Shivakumar said.

“The ISEG Foundation, which has come forward to sign this agreement with us, has already formulated such plans in Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Pune, and Varanasi. They have been given four months, within which they will submit the blueprint,” he added.

“I am instructing our officials to extend all necessary cooperation to them. Citizens of Bengaluru, developers, industrialists, and educational institutions must be taken into confidence to create a grand Master Plan,” he said.

–IANS

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