WILL METRO RAIL REMAIN A DREAM?

WILL METRO RAIL REMAIN A DREAM?
Gowda: Where will the funds come from?
The Times of India

Bangalore: JD(S) president H D Deve Gowda says he hopes the Karnataka government has not committed any serious procedural irregularity of accepting all the observations of the PIB without going through the requisite formalities for the Bangalore Metro Rail project.

In his letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and chief minister Dharam Singh, he has raised issues of projected cash losses during the initial years of the project which are required to be fully borne by the state government.

“Is it financially feasible for the state government to accept all this extra financial responsibility?’’ he asked. It’s a matter on which, in the light of revised detailed working of the financial implications, a proper Cabinet Note had to be circulated and the matter brought before the cabinet for a considered decision.

Gowda says the cost of land will be entirely borne by the Karnataka government. “We know very well that the provision for land acquisition in the detailed project report is grossly underestimated, and may go up by Rs 2,000 crore to Rs 4,000 crore. The Centre will not share any cost towards envisaged additional investments of Rs 347 crore for procurement of rolling stock,’’ as per the PIB observations.

Gowda says he has grave doubts if the Karnataka government can find the budgetary provision to accept the stipulation in the very first two or three years of the project. The PIB has clearly set itself against any further commitments to financially support extension of the Bangalore Metro Rail beyond Phase I.

Gowda said he fails to understand on what basis the Bangalore Metro Rail Transit Ltd MD has announced that the second and third phases are being taken up simultaneously with Phase I.

“I came to know that while clearing Phase I of 33 km, the views expressed by the finance department were not taken seriously. Any further commitments will require specific prior approval of the state cabinet.’’

He says the PIB’s view to have an expert committee set up to establish guidelines and a road map for considering alternatives/options on available proven technologies and facilities and their techno-economic implications, including capital costs, recurring costs of operations and returns along with costs of rehabilitation and resettlement, has to be fully respected.

Regarding route alignment and community consultations, the reservations raised by traders’ associations and by the people whose houses and shops are going to be affected have obviously not been taken into account, Gowda says. The reservations cited in the L&T Rambol Report about the dangers to public safety posed by Bangalore’s geological sub-strata have been overlooked. The violation of Karnataka Parks Act in taking the alignment route through Cubbon Park has also been overlooked.