Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore   

Bangalore metro rail project in limbo

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE Nov. 14. The proposed metro rail project for Bangalore is in limbo, as the State Government is yet to come out with a concrete proposal, the Union Minister for Urban Development, Anant Kumar, has said.

Mr. Kumar told presspersons here today that though he held a marathon meeting with the Chief Minister, S.M. Krishna, and requested him to place the matter before the State Cabinet, this had not happened till date. "Metro rail has been my pet talk with the Chief Minister," he said, adding he had reminded Mr. Krishna about the matter several times.

There were several alternatives, including the London's "intermodal" transport system, by which commuters could travel either by road or by the "tube" between two points, or one could emulate the Delhi model of the metro rail being inaugurated on December 24. In Delhi, the metro rail ran on elevated structures and underground. This could prove suitable for Bangalore as well. Fifty per cent of road transport users would shift to the railways if the metro rail were set up, he said.

There was a need to set up a special purpose vehicle, to realise the metro rail project and an early decision from the State Government could speed up the matter.

Earlier, participating in a function to flag off the Yeshwantpur-Solapur Express (weekly) train, Mr. Kumar said the Union and the State governments could each put in 13 per cent of the project cost. The rest of the money could be raised from financial institutions.

The Union Minister of State for Railways, Bandaru Dattatreya, who flagged off the train, said the Union Urban Development Ministry had to initiate the metro rail project.

Since the Bangalore Railway Station was congested, the Yeshwantpur station would be developed fast. It would have a foot overpass so that the residents of Yeshwantpur and surrounding areas could cross the railway station and reach Tumkur Road without entering the station.

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