Cabinet dithers on final clearance to airport yet again

Final clearance of airport project put off

For want of details on the implications of constituting a new pay panel the Cabinet has decided to discuss the issue later.

Deccan Herald

The State Cabinet on Saturday gave “in-principle clearance” for the much-delayed Bangalore International Airport Project, while putting off a final clearance to the next Cabinet meeting.

“We still need some clarity on certain issues. After the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) Board of directors meeting on December 14, which will discuss ‘irritants’, we will place it before the Cabinet again for finalisation”, Revenue and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M P Prakash told reporters after the Cabinet meeting. The Cabinet has to clear the state support agreement by which the state has to grant a soft loan of Rs 350 crore to the Rs 1,300-crore project.
The state’s attempt to bring down the project cost has delayed clearance by over three months now.

The Finance Department had been asked to review thoroughly all the possibilities to cut expenditure over the last two months.

Sources said that at Saturday’s Cabinet meeting, a couple of outstanding issues were raised by a few ministers with the chief minister.

They expressed concern over the heavy payment of over Rs 18 crore to lawyers over finalising various contracts for BIAL.

The JD (S) ministers are reported to have voiced their apprehension over the high payment to the lawyers and other issues concerning infrastructure, sources added.
Briefing reporters after a six-hour Cabinet meeting, Mr Prakash said the Cabinet discussed the project threadbare and gave clearance in principle to all state-related issues. He said that the Cabinet underlined the importance of the project for the development of the state.