Road development work around city gets priority

Road development work around city gets priority
As many as 46 roads will be upgraded on a priority basis, says Leena Mudbidri


With the aim of i m p rov i n g road infras t r u c t u re around the city, development work on 46 roads is being undertaken. Recently, H D Revanna, Minister for Public Works and Energy, had declared that the Government had plans to set up a Karnataka District Road Improvement Corporation (KDRIC) to develop 34,000 km of major district roads in the State. This Corporation would garner Rs 20,000 crores for the upgrading of district roads over the next five years.
The task of identifying major district roads for upgrading works had been undertaken by the Public Works Department. This procedure was undertaken based on the volume of traffic, connectivity and investment factors. According to a senior official in the department, about Rs 40-50 lakhs would be required for developing every km of district roads.
Major road works
Two major road development works are on the anvil. One significant road segment will involve the conversion of the Bangalore-Nelamangala-Hassan highway into a six lane highway which will be done at a cost of Rs 700 crores.
According to a senior official in the National Highways Authority of India, in the city, development work on the major road stretch from K R Puram to Mulbagal in Kolar district is slated to begin in January 2008 at an estimated cost of Rs 565 crores. He said that the works have been awarded and is tentatively scheduled for completion in 30 months.
He also said that the stretch between K R Puram and Hoskote would be made sixlane. Work on the 4.3 km stretch will begin in November.
The present Bangalore-Mysore four-lane road would be converted into a six-lane road and the work would begin in two months. The total cost of this road widening work has been estimated at Rs 750 crores. Service roads would be added on either side of the existing four-lane road. About 300 acres of land would be acquired.
Presently, there has been significant progress in the development work on roads from Hesaraghatta, Doddaballapur and Hoskote. 30 percent of the work has been completed. An estimated Rs 750 crores has been earmarked as the budget for the development works.
Funds for works
The KDRIC would execute the road development works based on the Karnataka State Highway Improvement Project (KSHIP) model. Hence, besides the State budget funds allocated for the project, the Corporation would raise funds through public bonds.
Also, Revanna had conveyed in his press statement that he had decided to spend the funds available with the State Government for repairing roads, bridges and culverts on all the district roads without waiting for funds from the Central government. He said that all the small bridges which were damaged due to wear and tear will be rebuilt if the cost of repairs was less than Rs 5 lakhs. He declared that the funds meant for roads that did not require development, could be used on the stretches that required it.