53 acres of NGEF land for metro soon

53 acres of NGEF land for metro soon

B.S. Ramesh
Government issues final notification on acquisition
Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited to set up integrated transport hub at the site

Three other hubs planned in Bangalore

BANGALORE: The State Government has issued a final notification to acquire the New Government Electric Factory (NGEF) land on Old Madras Road for the prestigious Namma Metro project.

Sources in Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) told The Hindu on Monday that the final notification acquiring 53 acres of prime NGEF land had already been issued and that the GO would be gazetted shortly.

Once the GO is gazetted, BMRCL plans to go ahead and physically acquire the land for setting up an integrated transport hub. This project is of vital importance to BMRCL as it plans to make it a major traffic point in Bangalore East.

The hub would comprise Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRC) undertakings on the NGEF land. Sources in the State Government said the decision to acquire the land was taken after the Company Court (Karnataka High Court) permitted it to acquire the land.

The matter was before the Company Court as NGEF is under liquidation and all the movable and immovable assets of the company, including land, are under the care of the official liquidator appointed by the Company Court.

The State said it had planned the transport hub on NGEF land to take care of the burgeoning traffic from Bangalore East.

The sources said apart from this hub, the Byappanahalli Metro Station was being designed and projected as a terminal station situated between Old Madras Road and Byappanahalli Railway Station.

On its part, BMRCL says it proposes to have direct pedestrian connectivity between the metro station and the railway station and also from Old Madras Road.

The traffic integration area, where BMTC and KSRTC buses would be available, is situated across the railway tracks.

The Byappanahalli station is likely to have a host of facilities, including easy access points for the physically challenged.

The sources said once the land is physically taken over by the BMRCL, the pace of work would pick up. Apart from Byappanahalli, BMRCL has proposed similar integrated hubs in three other parts of the city: Peenya, Mysore Road and Banashankari.