Capt. Gopinath out of Vision Group

Capt. Gopinath out of Vision Group

Sharat S. Srivatsa
He was heading Vision Group on Infrastructure

There was a dispute over HSRL implementation

BANGALORE: Low-cost aviation pioneer Capt G.R. Gopinath, who headed the Vision Group on Infrastructure, has been replaced by the Principal Secretary of Infrastructure Development Department V. Madhu. Mr. Madhu had held the post of vice-chairman of the Group, government sources said, and added that an order to this effect was issued on Friday.

Vision Group on Infrastructure is one of the 11 Vision Groups set up by the State Government to develop Vision 2020 document for Karnataka.

Dispute
Sources said that a dispute over the implementation of High Speed Rail Link (HSRL) to the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) was the reason behind Capt. Gopinath’s replacement.

While Capt. Gopinath and few other members of the Vision Group pressed for the implementation of HSRL, some members of the Agenda for Bengaluru Infrastructure Development (ABIDE) had expressed reservations on the project.

Instead, ABIDE members wanted the Namma Metro project to be extended to the BIA, sources said.

Capt. Gopinath, during a monthly meeting of the Vision Group recently, had urged the Government to hasten the process of the HSRL project, so that it could be showcased during the Global Investors’ Meet.

Meanwhile, Capt. Gopinath told The Hindu that he had not received any official communication in this regard.

“I came to know the news through someone else. I did my job. I had not approached the Government (for this job), instead it had approached me. Government has asked me to step down now.”

When asked if the differences over HSRL project forced his exit, he said, “I don’t know if there was a difference of opinion. I gave my opinion.”