BBMP may invite tenders for bus stand complex at Kalasipalyam soon

BBMP may invite tenders for bus stand complex at Kalasipalyam soon

Staff Reporter
— Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

Paying tribute: Flowers being showered on the statue of Kittur Rani Chennamma to mark her victory against the British, in Bangalore on Saturday.
BANGALORE: Transport Minister and Bangalore in-charge R. Ashok on Saturday said that he would direct the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to invite tenders afresh for construction of a bus stand complex at Kalasipalyam here.

He was addressing presspersons here after attending the 185th anniversary of Kittur Rani Chennamma’s victory against the British. The celebrations were a low-key affair in the wake of the recent floods in north Karnataka. The event was marked by garlanding the statue of Chennamma at Ravindra Kalakshetra.

Mr. Ashok said though the BBMP had invited tenders for the construction of the bus station, it did not materialise owing to pressure from some quarters.

On the introduction of new buses by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), the Minister said 250 new buses funded under JNNURM would be introduced in the first week of November. The Minister said that buses that had run over six lakh km would be phased out. He said 750 more buses would be introduced in Bangalore in the next four months.

In an effort to reduce pollution in Bangalore, eco-friendly green autorickshaws would be introduced in November. “Such autorickshaws will have four-stroke engines powered by gas and digital meter facility. They will help in reducing the pollution level,” he said.

The Transport Department would observe “Parisar Divas” in November as the number of children affected by asthma was increasing in the city. A rally would be organised from the Vidhana Soudha to raise awareness, he said. On the proposal to build a bus station of international standards at Subashnagar, Mr. Ashok said action had been taken to get approval from the Chief Secretary-level committee.