Now, pvt consultant to review NICE project performance

Bengaluru: With the three-decade-old framework agreement with Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE) mired in complexities and controversies, the state government has decided to appoint a private consulting firm to conduct a comprehensive performance review of both completed and incomplete components of the project. 

The decision was taken by the state Cabinet following a recommendation by a recently formed Cabinet sub-committee, which appears to have abdicated its responsibility of delving into the finer details of the project. The seven-member team was headed by Home Minister G Parameshwara and consisted of Cabinet ministers. 

According to the Public Works Department (PWD), the consulting firm is expected to provide solutions to "effectively address the complex challenges of land acquisition disputes, environmental concerns, political controversies, and legal and regulatory issues, among others". The department has recently floated tenders for the job. 

The private consulting firm will have a month's time to complete the work. 

The scope of work also includes assessing the feasibility of constructing a 111-km Bengaluru–Mysuru Expressway, evaluating revenue generated from toll collectionS on the 41-km Peripheral Ring Road and the 9.8-km Link Road, and examining the value of vacant land already acquired for the project, among other aspects. 

The project ran into controversy for violating the terms of the original 1995 framework agreement. The original agreement also included the development of five townships along the expressway. 

A House committee headed by Congress MLA T B Jayachandra had earlier uncovered multiple irregularities and recommended criminal proceedings against the project’s proponents.

It found that the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) had notified 13,000 acres of land in excess of the actual requirement. The project is also entangled in over 374 court cases, pending in the Supreme Court, the High Court of Karnataka and civil courts.