BENGALURU: The Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway, which will reduce the travel time between the two cities to 90 minutes, is facing a major hurdle because of labour shortage, triggered by Covid and lockdown. The contractors have not been able to source labourers, majority of whom have returned to hometowns, and are managing only with half the required workers which could push the deadline for completion of the project by 2022.
The Union Ministry of Surface Transport announced in March 2014 that the Bengaluru-Mysuru state highway (SH-88) would be turned into a 10-lane National Highway (NH-275) with a distance of 117 km from the NICE entrance in Bengaluru to the Ring Road in Mysuru. After much dilly-dallying, the work started only in early 2019 instead of 2018, as there were issues, including land acquisition, shifting of amenities and legal aspects.
The NHAI has taken up the work at an estimated Rs 7,400 crore. The stretch includes nine major bridges, 44 minor bridges and four road over bridges. The project has been divided into two packages, Bengaluru to Nidaghatta in Maddur (56.2 km) and Nidaghatta to Bengaluru (60 km). In the first package, 50% of the work is done, while in the second package, 25%.
The work stopped during the lockdown, and after it was rescheduled a few weeks ago, officials faced the labour shortage. “From both packages, over 8,000 workers were working, but now there are hardly 4,000,’’ PWD sources said. Contractors need skilled labourers to operate cranes, bulldozers, excavators and other high-tech vehicles and are training local workers. But that will take time, the PWD sources said. Sridhar, a Project Development Officer, NHAI, said that the work is in progress, but it is slow.