Maran pleads PM for grant to build city infrastructure

PM urged to allot Rs 500 cr for Bangalore infrastructure

The Hindu Business Line

THE Union Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Mr Dayanidhi Maran, has urged the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, to allot Rs 500 crore to augment Bangalore's infrastructure facilities as a special case.

Mr Maran, in a recent letter to the Prime Minister, has suggested that the amount could be released under a Central Scheme for Critical Infrastructure. "An addition of 50 flyovers in the first phase would ease the congestion to a considerable extent," he said.

IT firms in Bangalore have been complaining against the existing "inadequate" infrastructure facilities, especially roads. Major IT firms have gone to the extent of warning the Government that if there was no improvement to the city's infrastructure, they would be constrained to relocate their operations sooner or later.

"If this happens, it would really be a great set back to our country's IT industry and would hamper our efforts to become an IT super-power," Mr Maran said in his letter. Software exports from Bangalore city alone stood at Rs 27,400 crore during 2004-05, accounting for a major chunk of country's total exports.

The non-availability of adequate road infrastructure in the city could be gauged from the fact that the roads are crowded even during off-peak hours. "Hence, there is a dire need to construct additional flyovers in the city," Mr Maran said adding that Bangalore should be made a self-sustainable, dynamic and futuristic city of global standards.