After meeting representatives of the Karnataka State Contractors’ Association and Greater Bengaluru Authority Contractors’ Association on Saturday, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said, “I can understand the pain of contractors, but no one can threaten the government.”
Responding to the media, he said, “During the tenure of the BJP government in the State, more work was taken up than the Budget permitted, which has increased the problem. I have cleared as many bills as possible. The contractors here are not the only ones affected, they are spread across the State.”
“For instance, in the Irrigation Department, which comes under my portfolio, there is a grant of about ₹200 crore, but pending bills amount to ₹17,000 crore. With just ₹200 crore available, whose bills should be cleared and under which account?” he questioned.
New system
“Small contractors have pending bills ranging from ₹15 lakh to ₹1 crore, while large contractors have dues up to ₹2,000 crore. All of them are exerting immense pressure, so it’s impossible to meet everyone’s demands. That’s why I plan to introduce a new system,” he said, without elaborating the system he intended to introduce.
