The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL), which had taken up works to widen the road from Tin Factory skywalk to K.R. Puram railway station, is unable to complete the work as the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) has failed to transfer a patch of land required for the project.
While BDA Commissioner G. Kumar Naik claimed the authority had already transferred the land, senior BMRCL officials said that it was yet to be handed over to them, proving to be a hurdle for widening the key road.
The BMRCL needs this land to barter it with South Western Railway (SWR) so that they can widen the road near the K.R. Puram railway station. Widening of the road will help motorists coming from Benniganahalli flyover moving towards Whitefield and Silk Board. At present, the narrow roads under the cable bridge is a traffic bottleneck.
As per BMRCL officials, a compensation of ₹8 crore has been paid to the BDA for acquiring the 3,600 sq m of land near the railway station. “They have agreed to provide the land. BDA had acquired this property long ago but did not take physical possession of the land. Over the years, 40 odd structures, including commercial and residential structures of ground plus three storeys, have come up on this land. We had agreed to compensate for structures located on this land. Once the BDA hands over the land, the BMRCL will transfer the property to SWR,” a BMRCL official said.
The official said that a parking lot located under the cable bridge will make way for the widening of the road. It is said that SWR will provide a parking lot and other passenger amenities in the new property that will be handed over by the BMRCL.
Widening of the road is also very crucial as BMRCL is all set to open the K.R. Puram to Whitefield metro line for commercial operations in March. There is a plan to run feeder services from Byappanahalli to K.R. Puram station till the entire purple line from Baiyappanahalli to Whitefield becomes operational by mid-year.
To decongest the area, the State government had tasked BMRCL to widen the roads located on either side of the cable bridge and construct bus bays near Tin Factory. The BMRCL has spent ₹340 crore for land acquisition. The two lines of Namma Metro - Whitefield to Baiyappanahalli and Central Silk Board to Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) - go via this stretch.
An official of the BMRCL said: “We are working on the construction of bus bays in the area. There is a proposal to dismantle the Tin Factory skywalk to facilitate the construction of the airport line. The skywalk will be dismantled after operationalising Benniganahalli metro station. Pedestrians will be allowed to use the station to cross the road by using the concourse area.” For the benefit of passengers, the BMRCL has proposed to construct a foot over bridge connecting the railway and metro station.
