Yediyurappa chastises officials for stalled civic works

Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and his ministerial colleagues look at a model of the Silk Board Junction metro station on Sunday. DH PHOTO/ANUP R THIPPESWAMY

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Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, who went on rounds to inspect the city infrastructure on Sunday, was upset over traffic jams at various junctions and damaged roads.

The chief minister, accompanied by his ministers and elected representatives, chastised civic officials over the delays in completing the works. The chief minister and his entourage visited nearly 10 spots to check on the developmental works.

Yediyurappa stressed the need to expedite the metro work to reduce the density of traffic on the roads. “I’ve asked the BMRCL officials to ensure the metro to Electronics City is ready by 2021,” he told the media after inspecting the ongoing metro works at Bannerghatta Road.

Areas the chief minister surveyed included metro constructions, traffic bottlenecks and road widening in places like KR Puram, Silk Board and Hebbal.

To reduce traffic along the Outer Ring Road, the Outer Ring Road Companies Association (ORRCA) asked for a series of measures like a dedicated bus lane, zero tolerance for roadside parking, improved footpaths, cycle paths and clearance of illegal encroachments. They also asked to set 2020 as the deadline for the Whitefield and Electronics City metro lines to decongest the city.

ORRCA also said nearly a million — 10% of the city population — work in major companies along the ORR between Silk Board and KR Puram. This leads to heavy traffic jams as commuters move just four kilometers per hour.

Yediyurappa discussed the detailed plan to expand the road at ORR-Old Madras Road, asking officials to prepare a detailed report and submit it to the government. He asked for reasons for the delay in the Kundalahalli underpass construction and released Rs 45 crore for land acquisition.