The minister clarified that in some cities, the project was still at the nascent stage. (FILE PHOTO)
Karnataka Minister for Urban Development and Housing UT Khader today said that Rs 91.34 crore have been spent so far on seven cities in the state selected under the Smart City project.
The central and the state governments have each earmarked Rs 886 crore for the project.
Responding to a query from BJP MLA KS Eshwarappa during question hour, the Minister said new guidelines and rules have been framed under the project. He said that the creation of a special purpose vehicle for the project has been the cause for the delay in its implementation in the seven cities.
The cities selected under the project are Belagavi, Davangere, Hubballi-Dharwad, Shivamogga, Mangaluru, Tumkuru and Bengaluru.
Noting that central government had launched the Smart City project in June 2015, Mr Khader said this was different from other projects, as it required introduction of new rules which required more time.
He added that detailed reports on the project were underway and that work was on in all the seven cities.
He clarified that in some cities, the project was still at the nascent stage.
To this, several BJP leaders including opposition leader BS Yeddyurappa, Jagadish Shettar and Eshwarappa stressed the need for a supervisory committee to oversee the implementation of the project.