BBMP presses media button

Municipal Commissioner Bharat Lal Meena has hired a team of professionals to help him handle the media and improve the civic body's already battered image

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has finally become media savvy. Municipal Commissioner Bharat Lal Meena has hired a team of professionals to assist him in handling the press.

Meena wants to ensure that BBMP, which has quite a battered image (see box), is portrayed well.

Media analysis

"He is the first commissioner to have such a team," said a BBMP source. "The team will look at getting the BBMP's good work mentioned in the media." Meena, who is known for his efficiency, has started taking lessons from the team on a day-to-day basis. The team prepares a 'media analysis' report every day.

The report mentions how the public views BBMP depending on the media reports. "Based on media reports, professionals analyse and advise him on how to respond to them."

The team also tells Meena on the places in Bangalore that he needs to visit and gives him the information to reply to all the allegations in the media. "He spends much time with those who criticise him and BBMP in their reports, explaining them his stand," added the source.

Sceptics, however, believe this move is about building Meena's own persona. "It's a technique to promote themselves," said former mayor P R Ramesh. "Their efforts should reflect directly in work rather than such image building exercises."

The Other Side
"I prefer not to comment. We don't have any idea about it. Our team works to ensure that BBMP's work reaches Bangaloreans," said S Khandre, public relations officer of the BBMP

Criticisms
>>Poor maintenance of roads and hospitals
>>Failure in checking the stray dog menace
>>Failure of major infrastructure projects like the magic box
>>Failures during monsoon, which cause floods in low-lying areas
>>Poor infrastructure like improper drains
>>Delay in implementing projects like Dr Rajkumar statue installation in the Town Hall area
>>Failure in solid waste management and lapses in maintaining hygienic conditions in several parts of Greater Bangalore