'Work on additional LPG pipeline from M'lore to B'lore soon'

The work on the additional pipeline for the transportation of LPG from Mangalore to Bangalore via Hassan corridor will commence in two months as all necessary clearances have been given, said Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas M Veerappa Moily.

He was addressing mediapersons during his visit to the first transport hub of South India at Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) premises on Monday. The length of the proposed LPG pipeline is approximately 362 km and the project cost is estimated at Rs 701 crore.

The pipeline will have a spur line from Hassan to Mysore and the project is scheduled to be completed by November 2015, he said.Once the pipeline is laid and commissioned, then it is expected to reduce the movement of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) tanker on Mangalore-Bangalore national highway  by 50 per cent, the Minister hoped.

The project has received statutory approvals like authorisation of Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB), Ministry of Environment and Forestry, State Pollution Control Board, labour licence and factory approvals. The possession of 2.47 acre land for receiving station at Mysore and 9.93 acre land for intermediate station at Hassan has been completed. Land acquisition process at Neriya in Belthangady taluk for IP station is in progress.

Transportation hub

The work on South India’s first transportation hub to cater the needs of transport crew, for which the foundation stone was laid in March 2013 at HPCL Mangalore LPG Import Facility premises, has been completed and will be inaugurated in January. The hub will provide facilities like dormitory with the capacity to accommodate 60 drivers/helpers, medical room, book bank, Yoga/Gym, bakery/convenience store and ATM machine. A doctor will be available for the consultation at medical room for two hours, everyday.

Veerappa Moily said that the transportation hub has been established at a cost of Rs 1.2 crore, in Mangalore on a pilot basis.The facilities will be expanded in the future, based on the needs. The tanker drivers are expected to make optimum utilisation of the facility. The Ministry will also direct all the petroleum companies to set up transport hubs, he said.

When asked about the additional charge of Environment Ministry that has been handed over to him, Moily said that he would consult his predecessor Jayanthi Natarajan at New Delhi on Tuesday and plan further. “She has worked well and I will carry forward her legacy,” he said.

Affirming that he would contest from Chikballapur constituency in the coming Lok Sabha election, Moily ruled out the rumours of him trying to promote his son Harsha Moily as a candidate in the Lok Sabha election. “He has been working for the party since 1980. I am not sponsoring him. It is upto the party leaders to decide on fielding him,” he said.

Commenting on the issue of ban on areca, he said Union Minister for Health Gulam Nabi Azad has promised that there was no proposal before the government to ban areca. The uproar was created merely over the outcome of a scientific research. There is no need for agitation, he said.