BANGALORE: The Rs. 4.7 crores monthly grants released by the Government to the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) are being cut by Rs. 50 lakhs retrospectively from April 2005. The Government is, in fact, diverting this amount to the State Department of Public Libraries. This is because the BMP owes the department Rs. 24 crores collected in the form of library cess from property owners through tax for the last six years.

Senior officials in the department point out that despite several reminders from the department, the BMP has not cleared the dues. They argue that this has affected the development of the five zonal libraries and 85 branch libraries in the city.

But the BMP authorities point out that the civic body is not collecting any rent from the department for using BMP land and buildings to run libraries.

"If we slap even 10 per cent of the market value, the department will have to pay us Rs. 10 crores monthly as rent. We are unable to pay the arrears because whatever grants we get from the Government are not enough even to meet the monthly administrative expenses of the civic body," an official in the BMP's finance department said.

But the Public Libraries authorities are not convinced with this explanation. "As much as 34 per cent of the property tax collected from every citizen is towards `other cesses.' This category comprises 15 per cent education cess, 10 per cent health cess, 6 per cent library cess and 3 per beggary cent cess. The library cess is supposed to be utilised for the maintenance and upkeep of libraries and the BMP is bound to deposit the amount so collected to the department," the Director of Public Libraries, P.Y. Rajendra Kumar, said.

"Though we have reminded the BMP several times, they are yet to pay the arrears. So we requested the Government and are getting Rs. 50 lakhs monthly from April 2005 towards the arrears," he said.

Primary and Secondary Education Minister R. Ramalinga Reddy, who is also the Libraries Minister, said he had asked the BMP to allot land for new libraries and make up for the arrears. "The BMP had `identified' 10 sites. The officials inspected the sites and found that only seven of these can be used for libraries. But the BMP is yet to hand over the sites," he said.

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