CMH Road traders demand realignment of metro-rail

CMH Road traders demand realignment of metro-rail
Vijay Times

Traffic came to a standstill for half a day on the busy CMH Road in Indiranagar on Monday, as hundreds of traders downed shutters and demonstrated against the proposed alignment of the metro rail on CMH road.

The march was led by senior advocate Pramila Nesargi and Imtiaz Ahmed, president, CMH Road Traders and Establishments Association. They called on the government to make public the recommendations of the expert committee formed to look into the nitty-gritties of aligning the metro on CMH Road. "More than 5000 people will be rendered jobless if the metro is aligned on our road. The government should consider having the mono-rail instead," Nesargi reiterated.

Imtiaz Ahmed said the government can save Rs 400 crore if the project is aligned along Old Madras Road. "The whole process is not transparent. We request Chief Minister Kumaraswamy to personally intervene and change the alignment," he said.

P K Shetty, a resident of CMH Road, who also owns a provision store, said the BMRC, while aligning the metro, will also have to initiate road widening, as the metro cannot pass on the narrow stretch of the CMH Road. "We do not want to lose our businesses and homes. By paying compensation, the government cannot force us to vacate the land we have been residing on for decades," he explained.

Shouting slogans against the project, traders said they were prepared to give up their lives to prevent the metro alignment on CMH Road.