HR Mahadeva is appointed as the Commissioner of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) by the Karnataka Government. The new Commissioner replaces GC Prakash.

GC Prakash had taken to the post of BDA Commissioner in August 2019. Following his transfer as the regional commissioner to Mysuru, Mahadeva was appointed to the existing vacancy by the state on Wednesday, June 3.  

Bangalore Development Authority
Bangalore Development Authority representational

Arundathi Chandrashekar appointed new mission director

Meanwhile, Dr Arundathi Chandrashekar is posted as mission director at National Health Mission and Directorate of Health, Bengaluru replacing Ramachandran R, who is now the Deputy Commissioner of Bidar. The former was working as the mission director of the National Urban Livelihoods Mission. 

A 2008-batch IAS officer, Mahadeva was previously the deputy commissioner of Bidar district in Karnataka. Ramachandran, the previous mission director at the National Health Mission and Directorate of Health now occupies this position. 

BDA recovers arrears to raise funds 

With the coronavirus induced lockdown hitting hard on the revenue income, the BDA has decided to focus on the recovery of arrears worth crores pending from allotted civic amenities sites. The development authority has been depending on these revenue incomes, primarily from the rent from the shops at its shopping complexes and from the sale of corner sites. 

As both these sources saw a halt in its services for over two months due to the lockdown, most of the tenants at its complexes could not pay the rent, making it difficult for BDA even to pay salaries for its employees. 

market in Bengaluru
market in Bengaluru

To bring a solution to this, the BDA Commissioner then had issued a public notice asking all the lessees of CA sites have to clear the arrears within 15 days. Also, it allotted 1400 CA sites for educational institutions, religious and social organizations on a lease basis.

Then the BDA Commissioner GC Prakash had stated that the authority will lock the buildings constructed on CA sites by the lessees if they fail to clear the arrears within 15 days.