Sivananda Circle flyover cost doubles

Mired in controversy initially, the steel flyover on Hare Krishna Road at Sivananda Circle has kicked up another row with its exorbitant cost. The project, originally conceived at a cost of Rs 19.85 crore, will now be executed at an escalated cost of Rs 42.45 crore, a steep rise of Rs 22.6 crore.

Further, the new General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) put out by the BBMP engineers has also revealed that the length of the flyover has been increased from 326 metres to 493 metres. The engineers have also increased the number of piers from six to 16, which according to officials, has escalated the cost of the project.

Clarifying, K T Nagaraj, chief engineer of the project said, “The ramp gradient on Race Course Road side has been reduced from 6.6% to 5.6% and ramp gradient towards Sheshdripuram side from 5% to 3.5% to ease the flow of traffic on either side.” He also stated that the reduction in the slope of the roads needed extra piers to support the extended ramp of the structure.

Officials claimed that the original plan was revised following the high court’s directions which included changes in technical aspects of the steel flyover. However, the BBMP’s action has left the local residents miffed.

One of the petitioners opposing the construction of the flyover said, “None of the revised data is as per the guidelines of the Indian Road Congress. According to the guidelines, the ramp gradient should not exceed 3.5% but it has touched 5.6% in this project. The whole plan is a defect in itself.”

The petitioner also termed the construction as unscientific. “The traffic snarls will definitely shoot up as the railway under bridge at the end of the ramp is extremely congested. This would also trigger water logging and might lead to accidents,” he said. Dr Aravind Desai, a resident of the locality said, “Traffic congestion would get three times more acute. The objective of the flyover should have been to control the flow of traffic but it is not serving the purpose in this case. This project is a complete waste of resources.”