Bengaluru’s transport watchdog BMLTA faces questions over relevance

Bengaluru’s BMLTA finally notified after 3 years, but ₹1 lakh crore projects excluded, raising doubts over its role as city’s transport watchdog

Three years after the enactment of the Bengaluru Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) Act, the Karnataka government has finally notified draft rules to operationalise the statutory body. Conceived on the lines of Transport for London, the BMLTA was intended to serve as a unified transport planner for the city. However, concerns are emerging that its role may be limited, as several major projects have been kept outside its purview.

On January 3, the Urban Development Department released draft rules outlining procedures for the authority’s composition, meetings, financial management, and audit framework. Citizens have been given 30 days to submit objections and suggestions. Among the 24 rules listed, one clause specifies that all decisions, plans, and operations already approved by the government will be deemed valid under the Act, effectively shielding them from BMLTA scrutiny.

This provision means that projects worth over ₹1 lakh crore, including tunnel roads, multiple flyovers, and new roads along buffer zones of drains, will not fall under the authority’s ambit. These projects were sanctioned prior to the notification of rules, raising doubts about whether the BMLTA can truly function as an independent watchdog.

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Transport experts argue that the exclusion of previously approved projects undermines the very purpose of the authority. They point out that several initiatives, such as the tunnel road project, were not part of the Comprehensive Mobility Plan of 2020 and may not align with long-term urban mobility goals. The expectation was that the BMLTA would provide oversight and ensure consistency with the city’s transport vision, but the current framework appears to bypass this responsibility.

The BMLTA Act was passed in December 2022 and published in January 2023, but remained ineffective due to the absence of rules. The recent notification comes amid pressure to operationalise the authority, as the Centre has made it mandatory for future metro line approvals. While the rules set the stage for the authority’s functioning, the exclusion of major projects has led to criticism that the BMLTA risks being “dead on arrival,” with limited influence over Bengaluru’s transport planning.

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