Peripheral Ring Road project: Public hearing today

The public hearing for the Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) project will be held at Ambedkar Bhavan in Yelahanka at 11 am on Wednesday.

The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) has sought to build the 73.5-km PRR at a cost of Rs 14,934 crore under the public-private partnership model. The road has been designed to join NICE Road at both ends, to form a full ring around Bengaluru. However, officials have been struggling to get the land owners on board. Tenders inviting bids from private companies were cancelled recently.

Last month, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), the nodal agency for holding the public hearing, issued a public notice inviting the views, suggestions and objections of the people likely to be affected by the project.

The project will require the felling of 32,175 trees, affecting six lakes as well as the TG Halli catchment area. Environmentalists have opposed the project stating that the damage will further add to climate change and global warming.

Farmers’ protest

As per the latest environment impact assessment (EIA) report, the project will require the acquisition of 2,567 acres and 22.25 guntas of land in 78 villages.

Farmers, however, have been up in arms against the BDA’s stance that they will not be compensated under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition Act 2013. The authority’s proposal to pay for land under the BDA Act will leave them at a loss, they said.

Members of the PRR-Affected Farmers Association held a protest near the BDA office on Tuesday. They were packed into two buses and taken to the Adugodi police station. Undeterred, the members staged a protest at the Adugudi Police Training Centre till late evening.