BMIC all set to go through

Storm over, BMIC to be completed: project chief
Times of India

Bangalore: Nearly a decade after he signed the MoU for the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor project, former prime minister Deve Gowda sought to review his own brain-child.

In a letter to the chief minister in September, Gowda asked for a review committee to be set up consisting of principal secretaries of various departments, thus precipitating a Dhabol-like situation.

Yet, now it seems things are moving. In his first interview since the prolonged controversy surrounding the project, Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise managing director Ashok Kheny told The Times of India that the storm has blown over and the venture is going ahead as scheduled.

The first phase will cost an estimated Rs 800 crore and the financial closure was achieved with 11 financial institutions led by ICICI Bank Ltd backing the project. The project company, NICE, is a consortium of Kalyani group, VHB International Ltd and SAB International Ltd. If all goes well, the first phase will be completed by August 15, said Kheny.

The story of this mammoth project can become a lesson for private players in taking up a greenfield project. Consider these facts: BMIC has seen 341 IAS officers, 8 chief secretaries and 4 chief ministers. What more, it had to get over 10,500 government approvals to come to its present state. An independent regulatory authority was
created to be overseen by a senior BDA official.

Currently, the project is on in portions of land acquired for the purpose. When completed, the first phase will create a garland road around the southern portion of Bangalore connecting NH4 and NH7.

“The state government need not waste its money on roads on stilts on Hosur Road since our road will connect Bannerghatta Road to Hosur Road just before the Electronic city,’’ said Kheny. The BMIC project has seen the most dramatic flip-flops even from some of its ardent supporters like Gowda and former chief minister S.M. Krishna. “We have got all approvals and we are diligently implementing the project,” said Kheny.

Kheny refuted charges like acquiring more land than was required, pledging the land with ICICI Bank Ltd against a loan and deviating from the original Frame Work Agreement. “We have not deviated from the FWA and all changes have been made either on court order, like realigning the road, or under the order of the government,” he said.

Karnataka had signed 45 MoUs in 1995 and BMIC project is the sole survivor amongst them. Kheny said: “I spent
these 10 years in hope and I will spend another 10 years and will see this project through.”