Fresh discrepancies have emerged in the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for Bengaluru’s proposed Hebbal–Silk Board tunnel road, sparking serious questions about the project’s data integrity and planning rationale.

The tunnel, set to run 30 metres underground, claims to reduce commute time from 1 hour to 20–25 minutes. However, activists and transport experts have flagged numerous data anomalies, accusing the report of relying on outdated studies, unverifiable assumptions, and statistically improbable traffic figures.

A glaring issue lies in Table 93, which forecasts 2,927 vehicles moving in both directions on the corridor for the year 2027-28—identical numbers that experts call a mathematical impossibility and likely a copy-paste error. “Just reordered columns, same data — it’s sloppy and lacks scrutiny,” said Rajkumar Duggar, founder of Citizens for Citizens.

Mobility expert Satya Arikutharam criticized the BBMP’s flawed transport modelling, pointing out contradictions. The DPR claims corridors like Race Course Road to Hosur Main Road handle over 20,000 vehicles, but pegs the tunnel’s volume at just 8,631, despite it being pitched as a high-demand route.

Prof. Ashish Verma from IISc warned against planning based on outdated reports, stressing that Bengaluru’s traffic evolves rapidly and demands current data for effective infrastructure decisions.

Activist Prasad N demanded that the full DPR be made public for peer review. “Without Metro or bus integration, the tunnel risks becoming a private expressway for the elite,” he said.