Airport at Devanahalli will be ready by March 31: Governor

Airport at Devanahalli will be ready by March 31: Governor

Special Correspondent

High speed elevated direct rail link from Bangalore planned

Bangalore: Work on the international airport at Devanahalli is on schedule and will be ready by March 31 next year.

Stating this at a press conference here on Friday, Governor Rameshwar Thakur said he would request Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to inaugurate the airport.

Accompanied by his advisers S. Krishna Kumar, P.P. Prabhu and P.K.H. Tharakan, the Governor said development of infrastructure for the airport, including connectivity from the city, was in full swing.

Mr. Kumar said the executive committee also discussed a proposal to build a high speed elevated direct rail link from BRV Parade Grounds on Mahatma Gandhi Road to the airport. Passengers could directly check-in and reach the airport in 25 minutes. The rail link could be built using the space on the road median.

He said that the Home Department and the city police had been asked to study its impact on vehicular traffic at the starting point and the feasibility of the project. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Managing Director E. Sridharan would meet with the advisers on December 15 to discuss the issue.

Mr. Kumar said a proposal to build another railway station at Byappanahalli on Old Madras Road was also discussed.

The three railway stations in the city and at Yeshwanthpur and Cantonment were very busy and Bangalore needed another full-fledged railway station.

Mr. Kumar said the Department of Industries had land which belonged to the NGEF. Some portions of the 228 acres had been given to the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation and others. The Government had directed the Industries Department to take up the proposal with the Railway Ministry to ease congestion in other railway stations.