Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, accompanied by Cabinet colleagues and legislators from Bengaluru, on Monday inspected various ongoing works aimed at decongesting traffic and provide alternative routes to Kempe Gowda International Airport near Devanahalli.
One of the alternative routes is a link to the airport from Hennuru Main Road, Bagaluru circle, Bandikodgehalli and Mylanahalli stretching 21.48 kilometers. This route, on completion, is expected to reduce a distance of 9.64 km for back and forth journey. The Chief Minister also instructed the Revenue Department officials, who accompanied him, to acquire 15 acres 32 guntas land near Mylanahalli required for the project.
The chief minister also inspected another project – from Bengaluru Central part to the Airport via Thanisandra Main Road, Bagaluru Road and Mylanahalli. The distance would be 20.63 km and would reduce 3.14 km for back and forth journey. The government had already released Rs 17 crore for development of Thanisandra road under Nagarothana scheme and another Rs 31 crore has been granted to take up grade separator work near Thanisandra. The other alternative route is via Magadi Road, Peenya and Yelhanka.
In all the government had released a grant of Rs 300 crore for various developmental works such as bridge construction, widening of roads, flyovers and underpass with the sole objective of decongesting traffic towards the airport by providing alternate routes.
Later, interacting with the media representatives at his home office Krishna , the chief minister said the proposed steel bridge had already been declared in his budget speech during 2014-15. “The Detailed Project Report (DPR) had been put on website of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and public opinion had been called for. Nearly 73 per cent of the people had supported the project and it is not done hurriedly as alleged by the opposition. There was no need to have any suspicion over the project and it is transparent and decision taken in a democratic way,’’ he said.
He said that himself had two meetings earlier on the project and the Chief Secretary four and discussed the project in detail. “The final DPR was done in 2015 and it included cost benefit factor analysis also. Due to escalation the project cost now stood at Rs 1791 crores including 14 per cent Value Added Tax on steel as against four earlier,’’ he said.
He said different routes are also under examination to take up Metro rail service to the airport.
To a question, the chief minister said the Namma Bengaluru Foundation had approached the High Court seeking directions to stop the project. “The High Court had issued interim relief and directed the state government to go ahead with the project,’’ he said.
To another query the chief minister said If developmental projects were to be implemented, it is inevitable to cut some trees coming in the way. “The government was also concerned about the ecological factors and more than 10 lakh saplings are being planted in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike limits,’’ he said.
