Former CITB Chairman D. Madegowda on Govt. forming ‘Mysuru Development Authority’

Mysuru: Reacting to the Government’s decision to rename the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) as the Mysuru Development Authority (MDA), former City Improvement Trust Board (CITB) Chairman D. Madegowda said that a mere name change does not equate to public welfare.

True reform, he stressed, can only come through a shift in the approach and attitude of those working within the Authority.

“In its early days, the City Improvement Trust Board earned people’s trust because it functioned with honesty and a clear commitment to urban development and public good. Elected representatives, officials and staff served with sincerity, which is why the word ‘Trust’ was not just in the name but in the spirit of the institution,” Madegowda recalled.

He noted that when CITB was renamed MUDA, the sense of public trust began to erode. “People began to lose faith in the institution. Whether real development happened under MUDA or whether the city suffered setbacks is still open to debate.”

“Now, after years of disillusionment, the name has been changed again — to Mysuru Development Authority (MDA). But unless the mindset of those within the system changes, the renaming exercise will be meaningless. Neither the people nor the Government will benefit and the stains on governance will persist,” he said.