CM’s deadline over; any sign on road?

CM’s deadline over; any sign on road?
Times of India

Bangalore: As the deadline to make city roads motorable passed on Monday, chief minister N. Dharam Singh said he would seek information from the BCC and BDA on the progress made on this front.

Singh told reporters the government had set November 15 as the deadline to commence work after a meeting with IT captains last month. “We could not start work due to heavy rains. We have already permitted the BCC to take up 900-km road repair works at a cost of Rs 145 crore. This is besides Rs 34 crore for works on Hosur, Sarjapur and Bannerghatta roads. I will seek a report from the civic authorities and find out the status,’’ he said.

Work to start today: The BCC will take up asphalting of 1,000 km of arterial and sub-arterial roads from Tuesday.
“We were waiting for rain and Diwali to get over. On Tuesday, I have called for a meeting of package contractors after which work will commence,’’ BCC engineer-inchief Rame Gowda said.

900 km of roads to be upgraded in City
Mr Dharam Singh will discuss infrastructure upgradation with BMP and BDA commissioners after completion of the southern chief ministers’ conference.
Deccan Herald

About 900 kms of roads in Bangalore city will be upgraded with Chief Minister N Dharam Singh directing the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike to undertake such a road development programme to upgrade city infrastructure.

Speaking to reporters in Bangalore on Monday, the chief minister said the road upgradation works would be undertaken at a cost of Rs 145 crore. The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) had been asked to take up infrastructure development works in the municipal councils around Bangalore.

Asserting that the coalition government in the state would give equal importance to IT and rural areas, Mr Singh said infrastructure development works in and around Bangalore city would commence from Tuesday.

The government had decided to take up these works under a comprehensive infrastructure development programme that had been chalked out at a meeting with the IT representatives and heads of civic agencies held last month. Such a meeting had been convened after the IT industries had expressed anger over poor infrastructure facilities in Bangalore.

When he was reminded that the infrastructure development works had not commenced from November 15 as announced by the government earlier, Mr Singh said he would direct the officials concerned to commence infrastructure development works from Tuesday (Nov 16). The infrastructure works could not be taken up so far due to rains, he noted.

He would also hold a meeting with commissioners of BMP and BDA on the infrastructure upgradation after the completion of the two-day meeting of the southern regional chief ministers beginning from Wednesday in Bangalore, Mr Singh said.

The chief minister said three roads —Bannerghatta Road, Sarjapur Road and Airport-Varthur Road —where there is concentration of software companies would be developed at a cost of Rs 34 crore as decided earlier.

The infrastructure development plan, chalked out by the last month’s high-level meeting, listed various programmes including construction of a comprehensive drainage system and bringing all the roads in the city under a maintenance contract of three years.

Besides, the plan has also set deadlines for completion of various on-going construction projects of fly-overs and roads.