Bengaluru South City Corporation

Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024

The Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024 (Karnataka Act No. 36 of 2025) was enacted by the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and received the assent of the Governor of Karnataka on 23 April 2025, first published in the Karnataka Gazette Extra Ordinary on 24 April 2025.^[5] The Act dissolved the BBMP and established the Greater Bengaluru Authority as an apex coordinating body, under which five City Corporations were constituted to independently govern distinct geographic zones of Bengaluru.

Preliminary notification and public consultation

On 19 July 2025, the Government of Karnataka published Gazette Extra Ordinary No. 403 under notification No.UDD 170 BBS 2025(e), proposing the constitution of five City Corporations with specified boundaries and inviting objections and suggestions from affected persons within thirty days.^[6] Following consideration of objections and suggestions, the final notification constituting the corporations was issued on 2 September 2025 and signed by Nandakumar B., Under Secretary to Government, Urban Development Department (BBMP-2 and Coordination).^[1]

Ward delimitation

The Karnataka government conducted a fresh ward delimitation exercise in 2025, replacing the earlier BBMP ward structure. The BSCC was assigned 72 wards across a 147 km² (57 sq mi) area, part of a wider 369-ward delimitation across all five corporations.^[7][8]

Constitution of the corporation

The BSCC came into existence on 2 September 2025 by gazette notification, formally superseding BBMP administration within its area and transferring assets, staff and liabilities to the new corporation under the transitional provisions of the Act.^[1][5]

North boundary (with Bengaluru Central City Corporation)

The northern boundary starts at Madhavan Park and runs south-east along Mountain Road. It then traverses Bannerghatta Main Road, Hosur Main Road, Lalbagh Main Road, 80 Feet Road, Ejipura Main Road and Sarjapur Road, ending at Euphoria Cricket Ground near Koramangala.^[1]

West boundary (with Bengaluru West City Corporation)

The western boundary begins at Shri Honnappa Swamy Temple and runs north along the Bangalore-Mysore Expressway link road. It continues via Ittamadu Main Road, Kuvempu Road, Chikkalasandra Main Road, Kanakapura Main Road, and ends at Holla Breast Centre.^[1]

East boundary (with Bengaluru East City Corporation)

The eastern boundary starts at Neptune car zone and moves east to Bellandur tank, continuing south and west along Bellandur Outer Ring Road before ending at the Sarjapur Road junction with the Outer Ring Road.^[1]

South boundary (with BDA areas)

The southern boundary follows a path from St. Stephens Mar Thoma Church southward to the Bangalore-Mysore Expressway link road, tracing the GBA boundary via NH 48 (NICE Road), Kanakapura Main Road, NH 44, Sarjapur Road, and the Outer Ring Road.^[1]

Legal and administrative status

No corporation council has yet been elected, so there is no political control history to report.

Leadership

Political leadership of an elected corporation council is vested in the Mayor, assisted by a Deputy Mayor, both elected by the Corporators for a 30-month term.^[5] Since no corporation council has yet been elected, the Mayoralty and Deputy Mayoralty have remained vacant since the BSCC's constitution. In the interim, administrative leadership has been provided by state-appointed officers:

Composition

As the BSCC has not yet held a Corporation election, there are no elected political groupings to report. All offices are vacant pending the 2026 elections:^[9]

The next election is due by December 2026, per Supreme Court direction; the deadline was extended from an earlier 31 August 2026 target because of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.^[9][4]

Mayor and Deputy Mayor

The Corporators elect one of their members as Mayor and another as Deputy Mayor at the first meeting of the newly constituted corporation. Both offices carry a term of 30 months (co-terminus with the first half of the five-year corporation council term), with fresh elections held at the mid-term for the remaining 30 months.^[5] A no-confidence motion against either officeholder may be moved only after six months from the commencement of their term; once defeated, another cannot be moved for the next six months.^[5] The offices are subject to reservation by rotation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and women, as prescribed by the state government.^[5]

Commissioner

The Commissioner is appointed by the state government and serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation. The Commissioner must be an officer not below the rank of Secretary to the Government and holds office for a term of two years, subject to the pleasure of the Government.^[5] The Commissioner supervises Joint Commissioners and other subordinate officers, implements resolutions of the City Corporation and the Standing Committees, and conducts official correspondence between the Corporation and the Government or other authorities.^[5] In the absence of an elected corporation council, the Corporation is administered by the Greater Bengaluru Authority Chief Commissioner acting jointly with the BSCC Commissioner.

Joint Commissioners (Zonal)

For administrative decentralisation, the BSCC is divided into zones, each headed by a Joint Commissioner appointed by the state government at a rank not below Deputy Secretary to Government or Karnataka Administrative Service (senior scale).^[5] The Joint Commissioner of each zone is the nodal authority for civic administration within that zone and coordinates Ward Committees and delegated functions.^[5]

Standing Committees

The Act establishes seven Standing Committees for the BSCC, each consisting of a minimum of nine and a maximum of fifteen Corporators (including a Chairman elected by committee members), with a term of 30 months. The Mayor and Deputy Mayor are ex-officio members of all Standing Committees:^[5]

1. Standing Committee for Administration, Education and Social Justice
2. Standing Committee for Revenue and Finance
3. Standing Committee for Public Works and Engineering
4. Standing Committee for Public Health and Disaster Management
5. Standing Committee for Forest, Environment, Ecology, Lakes, Horticulture and Fisheries
6. Standing Committee for Infrastructure
7. Standing Committee for Audit and Accounts

Assembly Constituency Level Consultative and Co-ordination Committee

For each Vidhan Sabha constituency falling within the BSCC, the state government constitutes an Assembly Constituency Level Consultative and Co-ordination Committee chaired by the local Member of the Legislative Assembly, with the Corporators of that area as members. This body meets at least once a month to coordinate with government agencies, monitor project implementation, and address public grievances.^[5]

Ward Committees and Ward Sabha

Each of the 72 wards has a Ward Committee of 15 members, chaired by the Corporator for that ward, with reserved seats for Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes members, women, and registered Residents' Welfare Association representatives, plus Corporation nominees and members chosen by random draw of lots. Ward Committees have a term of 20 months.^[5] Each ward additionally has a Ward Sabha of all registered voters, which provides input to the Annual Ward Development Plan and meets at least quarterly.^[5]

2026 elections

The 2026 Greater Bengaluru Authority elections will be the first elections held for all five corporations since the dissolution of the BBMP. The Supreme Court of India initially directed that polls be completed by 31 August 2026, rejecting a Karnataka government request for an extension to September 2026.^[9] The Court subsequently extended the deadline a further time, to December 2026, because of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls being carried out by the Election Commission across several states including Karnataka; the enumeration period was extended from 29 July to 8 August 2026, pushing back the publication of the final electoral rolls accordingly.^[4] Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar said the state government would comply with the revised timeline and would not seek any further postponement, stating that all local body elections in the state — including Zilla Panchayat, Taluk Panchayat, Gram Panchayat and municipal corporation polls — would be completed by the end of 2026.^[4] All 72 wards of the BSCC are scheduled to go to the polls simultaneously, in what will be the corporation's first-ever direct election.

Previous: 2015 BBMP election

The predecessor election was the 2015 Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike election, held on 22 August 2015 for the undivided 198-ward BBMP. The gap of more than eleven years between that election and the 2026 GBA polls represents an unprecedented discontinuity in Bengaluru's municipal electoral history, and means the BSCC — like its four sister corporations — begins its existence with no incumbents and no electoral precedent of its own.

List of wards