Land acquisition may delay Kundalahalli underpass

Delay in acquiring land for service lane is likely to put back the completion of the Kundalahalli underpass, further prolonging the commuters’ woes.

In its Detailed Project Report (DPR), the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) made provisions for two 7.5 metres wide service roads on either side of the underpass.

Lack of funds to acquire land, however, forced the civic body to narrow the service lanes to 3.5 metres a few months ago, but citizens demanded the BBMP to stick to the DPR design.

“We acquired land for the 3.5-metre service lanes and almost began work,” a BBMP engineer said. “But we had to cancel the plans since citizens wanted us to keep the lanes to 7.5 metres.”

He revealed that a request for funds has been made to acquire additional land for the 7.5-metre service road. “The file needs approvals from the finance department and the BBMP commissioner, before being sent to the BBMP council for its nod,” he said.

The process may cause a slight delay in completing the underpass.

While the BBMP needed a mere Rs 20 crore to lay the 3.5-metre road, it now needs a further Rs 45 crore for the additional three metres, BBMP officials said. Work for one of the service roads has begun.

Residents, however, are furious, as some felt the underpass work is a waste of money.

“The BBMP is splurging Rs 14,000 to Rs 15000 per square feet for the project. They could’ve easily linked Hope Farm near Whitefield with Vellara junction, which is almost a straight road. This would’ve helped thousands of commuters and reduced traffic,” a resident from the area said.