Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy.
Credit: DH Photo/S K Dinesh
New Delhi: Union Steel Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday said that Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has assured him that the long pending Satellite Town Ring Road (STRR) project around Bengaluru would get approval from the Union Cabinet.
Kumaraswamy, who met Gadkari to discuss the state pending issues, raised the long pending STRR, aimed at easing Bengaluru traffic congestion.
Gadkakri informed that the Public-Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC) has already approved the STRR and the Union Cabinet expected to approve soon, Kumaraswamy said in a statement.
Kumaraswamy noted that the STRR project was initially launched in 2013 but had been stalled due to various reasons. The project aims to provide connectivity to eight key industrial towns surrounding Bengaluru, he said.
The 4 to 6-lane expressway will connect Dabaspet, Doddaballapura, Devanahalli, Sulibele, Hoskote, Anekal, Kanakapura, Ramanagara, and Magadi, covering Bengaluru and its surrounding satellite towns. Additionally, it will integrate with the Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway, providing connectivity to Hosur in Tamil Nadu.
The STRR aims to divert heavy commercial vehicles away from Bengaluru’s core, ensuring seamless freight movement for industries without adding to urban traffic congestion.
Kumaraswamy also said that Gadkari also positively responded to implement the Mandya Ring Road project with the revised investment of Rs 900 crore.
Though the Mandya Urban Development Authority had already prepared a DPR (Detailed Project Report) for the project, there is a need to hike the project cost up to Rs 900 crore to ensure its implementation and Gadkari responded positively, Kumaraswamy said.
Gadkari also positively responded to upgrading national highways passing through the Melukote assembly constituency, between Jevargi and Chamarajanagar, from a two-lane to a four-lane highway.
Kumaraswamy also said he suggested that to construct a truck way along the highway near Pandavapura Railway Station to facilitate sugarcane transportation for farmers supplying the local sugar factory.