JOIN USB'lore-Mysore bullet train plan revived
Japan will send a technical delegation to the State soon to explore the possibility of starting a high-speed bullet train between Bangalore and Mysore, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Monday.
Addressing a press conference in Bangalore on his recent visit six-day visit to Dalian, China, to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting, Siddaramaiah said he had a meeting with Japan’s Minister for Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Hakubun Shimomura to share technology on starting a bullet train between the two cities.
The Japanese side agreed to send a delegation to Bangalore soon, Siddaramaiah said. The chief minister has also requested the Japanese to fund the project.
Siddaramaiah said after connecting the two cities separated by about 135 km by bullet train, it would be possible to cover the distance in 30 minutes. The high speed connectivity would help decongest Bangalore, he felt. The chief minister, during his stay in Shanghai, travelled in the Electro Magnetic Controlled Train from Shanghai Central to Pudong international airport, covering a distance of 50 km in eight minutes.
The previous BJP government had also proposed to explore the feasibility of high-speed train projects in the State, including a bullet train service at a speed of 275 km between Mysore and Chennai via Bangalore.
The government had invited a team of experts from Japan International Construction Company and Japan External Trade Organisation for the feasibility study. However, the project failed to take of.
Convention centre
Siddaramaiah said his government proposed to construct a convention centre of international standards near the Devanahalli airport at a cost of Rs 400 crore to Rs 500 crore.
The convention centre at Dalian, which hosted the WEF, was built in just 10 months, he said. The project would be taken up under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode, he said. A previous proposal to build a convention centre at a cost of Rs 250 crore near Devanahalli would be revisited, he said.
He said the road show hosted by the State government in Dalian received good response. As many as 150 investors and entrepreneurs of China participated in the event.
Siddaramaiah said Malta-based companies had evinced interest in being a part of aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling activities in Bangalore.
Prime Minister of Finland Jyrki Katainen evinced interest in cooperation in research and development and information and communication technology.
Malaysia’s Q1 Group expressed interest in investing in e-retail, IT and education sectors in the State and Spanish firm Acciona in waste water treatment, renewable energy projects and wind energy, Siddaramaiah said.