Bangalore projects on progress road

Bangalore projects on progress road
Deccan Herald

Deccan Herald: Your government is still struggling to begin work in earnest on the pending projects like the international airport, BMIC and even the road projects in Bangalore. Mr Deve Gowda seems to have his final say on all the projects including in tranfer of BDA Commissioner and restricting land allotment to the BMIC. Then what are your specific plans for Bangalore?

Chief Minister N Dharam Singh: We are attending to all these projects and we want to provide good roads. We are upgrading 940 km of roads by spending Rs 135 crore. We are trying to get 102 acres of Defense land for the metro project. Work on three major flyover is on. The agreement for the airport project has been revised thrice. Even Mr Narayana Murthy is happy now. We are solving the problems methodically.

There are complaints of allotment of excess land to the promoters of BMIC and as Chief Minister, I will have to look into it.

About the BDA, I had not transferred Mr Jayakar Jerome from the post of BDA Commissioner even when I appointed efficient bureaucrats to prime posts. I had great regard for Jerome.

It is a fact that he created assets to BDA. But we found lacunae in the tender process of Arkavathy layout and as a Chief Minister, I had to stall it and re-examine.

Jerome went on leave for two months, without informing me. Later he cancelled his leave and wanted to resume work. Is this the way to run an administration? I am not a baccha in politics. I have not yielded to anyone in case of BDA or BMIC. We could save 16 per cent of total cost by re-tendering the Arakvathy layout civil work and the benefits will be passed on to the site owners.

Was there any differences or rift between you and S M Krishna regarding the City development?
No (he did not elaborate).

Then why did you rush to Delhi with officials to hold a press conference? Did Sonia ask you to do it?
What else I could have done... there was a media campaign against our government in Delhi. Fed up with it, I went to Delhi to explain the developments taking place in the City.

You say primacy will be given to Bangalore. Then will the City have a minister exclusively to oversee its development? (At present Bangalore City comes under the CM’s purview)
Let me see... I may not be able to pay much attention to it … but I am yet to think about it.

What about the Bangalore Agenda Task Force? Will you reconstiute it?
The BATF will be strengthened and Mr Nandan Nilekani will continue to head it. They are peforming well and why should we change it?