Red tapism slackens pace of TDR

Red tapism slackens pace of TDR
Vijay Times


THE much spoken T ransferable Development Rights ( TDR) project, launched to widen roads in the City , is going on at a snail’s pace, than to red tapism.

According to sources in the Bangalore City Corporation (BCC), the TDR project has been facing serious problems due to the non-cooperation of the public and a few top bureaucrats. As a result, the project has been facing rough weather .

A former chief secretary has written a letter to the BCC, urging it to change the alignment of the project that involves widening the Sankey Road that lies between Hebbal lake and Minsk Square.

The former chief secretary , in his letter , had suggested to the BCC authorities that they acquire some portion of land belonging to the Balabrui Guest House rather than acquiring the golf course land alone.

Succumbing to the pressure exerted by the former chief secretary , the BCC had agreed to bring in changes to the alignment, official sources said.

As per the original plan, the drawing was prepared to acquire 25 ft of golf club land from its fence, the sources added.

"Now , the BCC will be acquiring 50 ft from the middle of the road on either side. Some portion of buildings like the Le meridian, a hotel, and the official residences of a few ministers will be acquired," sources said.

A police official of the High Grounds police station said that 75 per cent of the police station would be acquired if they went ahead with this project.

However , he said the renovation of the station was going on in full swing in the hope that the TDR project would take at least two years to complete.

Meanwhile, the BCC has been marking the areas that would be acquired for road widening.

The TDR project also envisages to build a Road Under Bridge (RUB) near Windsor Manor hotel to create another passage on the busy Sankey Road. A design in this regard had been prepared and would be approved shortly , the sources added.

Till date, over 50 TDR applications have been served. Some of the big players have evinced interest in parting with their land.

Silver lining: However , there is a silver lining. The defence authorities and officials of the Bangalore W ater Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) have agreed to part with their lands.

The authorities of the Bangalore University , Meteorological department and Public W orks Department have also agreed to provide lands required for the project.

Already , work is in progress on ten roads including the Palace and Hosur Roads.

In a meeting held on Dec 30, the defence authorities agreed to provide around 30 acres of land across the City for the project.