One more road being widened

One more road being widened

Staff Reporter

A stretch of Race Course Road is being widened by 15 feet on either side



BIGGER AND BETTER ROAD: Demolition work is going on to widen the Race Course Road in Bangalore on Wednesday. — Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash

BANGALORE: It will be a hassle-free ride for motorists on the Race Course Road from August. The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) started widening this road on Monday and work is likely to be completed in the next four months.

The stretch from Anand Rao Circle to Basaveshwara Circle is widened by 15 metres on either side and the road width will be 100 feet after completion of the work.

A top official in charge of road widening in the BBMP told The Hindu on Wednesday that work had been allotted to Karnataka Road Development Corporation Ltd. (KRDCL).

"KRDCL is getting the work done through KMC Constructions. The four-lane road would be widened to make it a six-lane stretch so that motorists can pass through without any hindrance," the official said.

The available government land allotted to Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Karnataka Power Corporation Ltd. (KPCL) on one side and R.C. College, Khanija Bhavan, and Bangalore Turf Club on the other side had been acquired and the compound wall of these buildings was demolished.

"At some points, we have to acquire property from private parties and this will be done through transferable development rights (TDR). But the extent of acquisition from private firms is less on this stretch because most of it belongs to the Government," the official said. The transferable development rights envisage permitting an additional floor area ratio (FAR) to owners whose lands were acquired for road widening. The civic body could acquire land without paying compensation and the owners had the option to either extend construction or sell the "rights" to a prospective builder in specified zones.

The BBMP, which had a target of widening eight roads this year, would soon start work on Palace Road, Seshadri Road and Kasturba Road. Tenders had been called for widening Bellary Road, Hosur Road, Hosur-Laskar Road and Nrupathunga Road. Work on these roads was likely to be completed by October. The State Government had permitted the erstwhile BMP (through a notification on February 3, 2005) to grant TDR to property owners and leaseholders for road widening. Following a poor response from people and to create a demand for the controversial scheme, the civic body had sought the Government's permission to establish a "TDR Clinic" wherein people could buy and sell the "rights".