Just not enough people in Hassan yet for city status

Hassan: Councillors of the Hassan City Municipal Council (CMC) may have the right idea in demanding a City Corporation status for Hassan town, but they may have to wait a while as the town does not have the population required for the upgradation under the Karnataka Municipal Corporation Act of 1976. 

Under the Act only a town with a three lakh population can be declared a corporation but  Hassan town has a population of merely 1, 55,450 going by the 2011 census. 

While  the  councillors passed a resolution on May 12 this year for merger of 10 gram panchayats with a population of  93, 467 and of a few more with it to take Hassan's population to around 2.5 lakh, it still falls short of the required numbers.

  CMC president, Anil Kumar, however, justifies the demand saying that being a CMC Hassan does not get enough funds to provide roads, drinking water, and an underground drainage, among other amenities , to its people.

Also supporting the CMC's demand, Hassan Urban Development Authority (HUDA) commissioner, Ramesh regrets that Hassan's boundary has not been extended since 1973. 

When contacted, Minister for Municipal Administration, Eshwar Khandre, said his office had not received any resolution to upgrade Hassan CMC into a City Corporation , but maintained that it had to meet the three lakh population criteria to qualify for the status.