Bangalore mayor off to NY, doesn’t know why

Foreign tours of Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) bosses have always stirred a row of controversies. And it looks like mayor Sharadamma is embroiled in one.

Sharadamma, along with opposition party leader M Uday Shankar, Mudalapalya ward corporator and former deputy mayor N Shanthakumari, BBMP engineer-in-chief BT Ramesh, and mayor’s personal secretary C Lingaiah will take part in the global partners’ summit, titled, ‘Business Innovation and Enterpreneurship: City Strategies Programme’ that will be held in New York, from November 2 to November 4.

The commissioner has instructed the chief accounts officer to necessitate action towards providing all expenses, including air fare, accommodation, and food for the training programme. Sources said that the BBMP will be spending more than `10 lakh for the tour.

However, Sharadamma who is waiting for her visa, does not know for what reason she is attending the summit and what benefits it may dole out. “Yes, I am going to the conference in New York, but I do not know the details of the discussion. I will get to know only when I reach there,” she said.

On corporator Shantakumari accompanying her, the mayor replied that being a woman she cannot travel alone with a party of men. Hence, she has requested Shantakumari to accompany her. “We will be leaving the city on November 1 and return after a week,” she said.

Interestingly, the mayor who had earlier planned on attending the Gwanju environmental summit in South Korea had backed out in the last minute. According to the sources, the plan was dropped as her husband Ramanjeneya could not get his passport on time.

This time, he is also leaving with her to New York, but he is using his personal money.

On dropping her Korea trip, she said she has been getting invitation for various conferences from across the globe. “If I start attending all the conferences in the world, who will look after the city?” she said.