D K Shivakumar claims Union minister Khattar praised ‘tunnel road’ project

Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday claimed that Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar praised various initiatives taken up by the Karnataka government, including the construction of tunnel roads and flyovers to decongest the city’s
traffic. 

“We have presented before him our demands for the state, but he has not assured us of any funds from the Centre,” Shivakumar said while speaking to reporters after attending the meeting of Urban development ministers of Southern states. 

The deputy chief minister also said the Centre has discontinued many urban-centric projects, which had existed in the past. The Centre, he added, has also not adhered to the promise of releasing funds under the 15th Finance Commission. 

During his address to the press, Manohar Lal Khattar did not specifically appreciate or reject the proposal of building the tunnel road in Bengaluru. “Every city needs a mix of solutions to decongest the traffic. The solution can differ based on the city, area and the road. It may be on ground solutions, flyover or tunnel,” he said, adding the choice should also be based on the situation and financing capabilities. 

He also admitted that the discussion on the tunnel road project was held at the meeting where Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar was present. “We are also promoting a rapid rail transit system and one such project has been approved for New Delhi,” he said. 

On the delays in approving Metro projects, Khattar said the decisions are taken after studying the technical reports and not linked to political considerations. “India will soon become the second largest Metro network in the world. We have also allowed the implementation of Metro projects under different schemes including self-financing, joint ventures, public private partnerships and by raising international loans,” he said.