Karnataka’s Greater Bengaluru Governance Act Takes Effect

The Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024, came into force in Karnataka on 15 May 2025. The law replaced the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Act, 2020, and created a new metropolitan governance structure for Bengaluru.

Greater Bengaluru Authority

The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) is the apex body under the new framework for Bengaluru’s urban administration. It is chaired ex officio by the Chief Minister of Karnataka and has the Deputy Chief Minister as ex officio Vice-Chairman.

The GBA was constituted on 26 August 2025. The body has been described in official references with a membership of either 72 or 75, and it includes elected representatives and senior officials.

Municipal Corporations Under the Act

The final notification of 2 September 2025 dissolved the unified BBMP and divided Bengaluru into five municipal corporations. These corporations are Bengaluru Central, Bengaluru East, Bengaluru West, Bengaluru North, and Bengaluru South.

The five corporations together contain 369 wards. The new structure places the corporations under the broader supervision of the Greater Bengaluru Authority.

Amendments and Electoral Process

The Greater Bengaluru Governance (Amendment) Bill, 2025, was passed by the Karnataka Legislative Council on 21 August 2025. The amendment clarified that the GBA would not affect the constitutional and financial powers of the local city corporations.

The Greater Bengaluru Governance (Second Amendment) Act, 2025, received the Governor’s assent on 6 January 2026. The amendment expanded the GBA to include the Chief Secretary and other senior civil servants, along with local MPs, MLAs, and MLCs.

On 17 July 2026, the Supreme Court of India extended the deadline for municipal elections for the five corporations from 31 August 2026 to 31 December 2026. The Karnataka State Election Commission and the GBA sought the extension in relation to the election schedule.

Important Facts for Exams

• BBMP stands for Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, which functioned as Bengaluru’s unified municipal body before the new law.
• The Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024, is linked to the restructuring of metropolitan governance in Bengaluru.
• The Greater Bengaluru Authority functions as the apex body under the new urban governance framework.
• Municipal corporations are local self-government institutions under the 74th Constitutional Amendment framework for urban areas.

Voter Roll Exercise

On 24 August 2026, GBA Chief Commissioner M. Maheshwar Rao released the draft electoral roll under the Special Intensive Revision exercise. The draft roll listed 56,99,660 voters and placed more than 46.88 lakh voters in the Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate and Others category.