Mysuru: After a wait of nearly 21 years, the Bengaluru-Hassan broad gauge line will soon become a reality with it expected to be operational from mid-March 2017.
The project for the 172 km stretch between Bengaluru and Hassan, which passes through Jain pilgrimage site Shravanabelagola was sanctioned in 1996 when H D Devegowda was the Prime Minister.
At the time of the sanction, the project cost was estimated at Rs 295 Crore but owing to the delay in the implementation for various reasons including land allotment and sanction of money, the estimated cost for the project has shot up four-fold i.e, Rs 1,289.92 Crore. Once the line becomes operational, the distance between Bengaluru and Hassan will be reduced by 50 km via Arsikere and about 87 km via Mysuru. The distance between Bengaluru and Hassan is 259 km via Mysuru and 213 km via Arsikere. However, the distance would be about 172 km once the direct line becomes operational.
The new line will connect Bengaluru (Chikkabanavar starting station) with Hassan via Nelamangala, Kunigal, Yediyur and Shravanabelagola and the total length of the track would be 172 km. The alignment of the new track is almost parallel to National Highway 48 (Bengaluru and Mangaluru). The Hassan-Shravanabelagola line, a 44 km stretch, was opened in 2006, but the project didn’t move further until 2010 for shortage of funds and land. The project gained momentum in 2010 when the state government agreed to bear half of the project cost while the railways had already spent Rs 335 Crore till then.
It will also reduce the travel timings between Bengaluru and Mangaluru. The 368 km route from Bengaluru will be 10.5 hour journey till Mangaluru and will help the existing route via Mysuru and Hassan which takes nearly 12 hours and Arsikere and Hassan that is 11.15 hours. Once the new line becomes operational, it will also help the devotees who visit Shravanbelagola and will fulfill a long pending demand of religious leaders from the Jain communities including those at Shravanbelagola.
The Commissioner for Railway Safety (CRS) has conducted a statutory inspection of the section from Nelamangala to Shravanabelagola including the speed test. The section from Bengaluru and Nelamangala on the one end and Hassan and Shravanabelagola on the other end has already been commissioned for passenger traffic. The remaining stretch from Nelamangala to Shravanabelagola will be started after authorisation by Commissioner for Railway Safety.
Speaking to Newskarnataka, Sanjiv Agarwal, Divisional Railway Manager, Bengaluru Division, South Western Railway said, “For most of the projects, funding and land are the two bottlenecks for delay in their completion. It was the same with this project. There was no proper assured funding for the project. Apart from this there were some land issues which were later resolved. Now everything is clear. We are awaiting authorisation from Commissioner of Railway Safety. Apart from this we require more staff, that is to start with, atleast 100 more members are required. I am confident that everything will be ready and the line will be operational by March second or third week”.
