After NHAI backs out, BDA finds new partner to develop Peripheral Ring Road

The Rs 11,950-crore eight-lane road running into 65 km aimed at decongesting the vehicular traffic in the city, was conceived a decade ago.

BENGALURU: With the National Highways Authority of India not showing any interest in taking up the Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) project as requested by the Bangalore Development Authority, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) has now been formed in the state to ensure the road is built.

“An SPV is being formed by BDA and the Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation (KUIDFC) to take the project forward,” said S Ponnuraj, Managing Director of the Corporation.

The Rs 11,950-crore eight-lane road running into 65 km aimed at decongesting the vehicular traffic in the city, was conceived a decade ago. It has not seen any progress barring acquisition of land belonging to farmers for the project. While litigation stalled its progress for a few years, later the whopping amount of Rs 8,100 crore needed to be paid to farmers as compensation for the acquisition of 1,910 acres of land ensured it came to a standstill due to paucity of funds with BDA.

Farmers whose lands were marked for acquisition have repeatedly staged protests pleading for their land or compensation.

BDA went in for the global Swiss Challenge Method of tendering which also failed to elicit responses. Union Minister for Highways Nitin Gadkari during a visit to the city last year said NHAI could consider implementing the project.

BDA subsequently wrote to the NHAI in the first week of March last year asking it to take up the project. When asked about the response, officials would repeatedly say, “It is a big project. We are waiting for the response from NHAI and they are positive about it.”

It has been recently learnt that NHAI is not inclined to carry out the work, a government source said.

Ponnuraj said, “The SPV is at a nascent stage now. The Centre and the State will be partly funding the project and KIUDFC will facilitate BDA in getting the funding.”

BDA Engineer Member P N Nayak said the final draft of the project is ready. “We are looking at KIUDFC’s assistance in getting funding for the project.” The BDA was looking at repaying the amount through collection of toll on the main carriageway (8 lanes) when the road gets functional, he added.

Three toll-free lanes on either side of the road, which runs to a width of 75 metres, will also be provided. “We will also be providing double Floor Area Ration (FAR) to property developers for a distance of 1.5-km on either side of the road. Betterment tax for development will also fetch us money,” he added.

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