Transparancy hasn't been a plus point with our city officials. What else can one make of their studied silence over 'bhumi puja' plans for a project that is to come up on the city corporation land ? I can understand the compulsions of the private promoter (Maverick Holding & Investment Ltd.) to keep their plans under wraps. They didn't want any public attention. With their investment at stake, promoters of the controversial Makkaji Chowk project, may be entitled to a hush-hush puja, though such conduct is peculiar for a private company that would scarcely miss an opportunity to milk publicity mileage. And the Bangalore-based Maverick management claims to have bagged the project in a transparent manner through a global tender.
What's unacceptable (in the era of RTI) is that the city officials (public servants) choose to co-operate with a private company in keeping people in the dark about the Maverick puja plan, that too, on a patch of land that belongs to the city corporation. It is highly unlikely that officials didn't have advance information about this little ceremony. That they chose not to share the info. with the media could expose our 'people-friendly' corporation officials to the charge of neglecting their public obligation. Incidentally, the corporation commissioner couldn't make it to the puja (he was reportedly busy at meeting with DC, at 8 a m. !!).
Mention must be made here of another bhumi puja, planned by another project promoter, earlier in the month. The proposed puja by Mr Ashok Kheny of NICE was effectively scuttled by an unseemly show of police force by the city authorities. Notably, the Mysore-Bangalore expressway project is no less controversial than Makkaji Chowk. The city bureaucracy, while preventing the NICE bhumi puja from taking place, went out of its way to facilitate it in another case. Unlike Maverick, Mr Kheny of NICE had publicly announced his intention to do puja, marking the start of the expressway project from the Mysore end. That was probably Mr Kheny's undoing. But then he is no maverick.
The Bhoomi Pooja done without usual publicity is unlike the usual pomp and publicity that such projects attracts. There was no minisster nad not even the DC and MCC Commissioner who weree conveniently closeted ina meeting. May be they wanted no exposure to publicity which may boomarang on them. Not withstanding the Pooja it has to crossmany hurdles with an advocate approaching the Supreme Court and general impression is that it is a mega scam. Despite bold assertion that the work will start in August my gut feeling is the project may go therouh many twists and turns. Bsically everthing about this venture is hush hush and probably only ajudicial enquiry will reveal the actual state of affairs.
