Bear 50% cost of Bengaluru suburban rail project, BJP MP tells Centre

 BJP MP PC Mohan in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday urged the Union government to accept Karnataka government’s proposal for bearing 50% of the cost for the suburban rail project serving Bengaluru and adjoining areas.

Raising the issue in the Lok Sabha during a debate on the demands of grants for railways, he said the draft policy for the project stipulates that the Centre and the state would each fund 20% of the cost and the state can avail loans for the remaining 60% of the total cost.
The Karnataka government, however, wants the project to be implemented in public-private-partnership mode with sharing of the cost in the ratio of 50:50, he said. “I request the government to accept it (Karnataka government proposal). Same model has been given to Chennai and others too. Once suburban trains are there, there will be less congestion on roads (in Bengaluru),” Mohan, who is an MP from Bengaluru Central, said.

 He said the Metro would not be able to meet the requirement of the city. Suburban trains can bring great relief to the people by covering Bengaluru and its adjoining areas within the range of 70-140 km like Mysuru. “I request Railway Minister (Suresh Prabhu) to look into the matter and immediately clear suburban trains for Bengaluru division,” he added.