Planned e-way from ORR to BIA jammed

Planned e-way from ORR to BIA jammed
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: For now, forget about a dedicated expressway to the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA). After sitting on the drawing board for more than two years and being handed over to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the road is far from flag-off.
The NHAI, which recently took over the project from BMRDA, is non-committal on a time-frame for the expressway, which was tipped to provide fast connectivity between the Outer Ring Road and BIA. Reason? Recurring opposition over feasibility issues and alignment discrepancies. Plan B? A shift in focus to Bellary Road (NH-7), the only major road that connects the city centre to BIA.
NHAI officials say opposition to the expressway is “worrisome’’. “The NHAI has received representations charging foul play in the alignment and other aspects. We are acquiring land for projects across the country, but haven’t seen such opposition,’’ they said.
The 21.2-km expressway was handed over to NHAI after the alignment was changed four times, leading to opposition by land-losers and inordinate delay in the project’s execution. According to NHAI, public opposition and the huge land acquisition costs involved — estimated at Rs 700 crore — were among the reasons for the change in the implementing agency.
Despite the transfer, NHAI officials are still in discussions with BMRDA over the project’s bottlenecks. The official, though, said PILs pending against the expressway were not in the authority’s purview since the state government — and not NHAI — was party to the issue.
Consulting Engineering Services (CES) is updating the project survey it had done for BMRDA. The new report is expected to be worked out as per central government guidelines. Has the project been put in cold storage? Manoj Kumar, project director (Project Implementation Unit), NHAI, said the focus was now on “immediate’’ issues of connectivity. “The Rs 500-crore scheme for improving Bellary Road is in an advanced stage. NHAI is also taking up four-laning of the road beyond the airport,” Kumar said.