BENGALURU: A day after heavy rains flooded the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president DK Shivakumar on Monday said that the engineers who planned and are executing the project must be given prestigious awards.
“I will urge the CM to give an award to the engineers. While developing highways, one must have the common sense to build them at an elevation. The highway has now become a lake,” Shivakumar thundered. He also took Bommai to task for not releasing compensation to those affected by floods in Ramanagara during his visit to the marooned district.
Meanwhile, JDS leader HD Kumaraswamy took a dig at Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha for calling the expressway as one of the best. “If he (Simha) had visited Sangabasappana Doddi on Monday he could have enjoyed a swim. In the past, he had posed for pictures as if he was responsible for implementing the expressway project,” he charged.
Simha, while indirectly referring to encroachment of lakes and canals across Ramanagara district, said both Kumaraswamy and Bengaluru Rural MP DK Suresh should take steps to first clear them. “They should get a joint survey done of all the lakes and canals in Ramanagara district through the district administration, revenue and minor irrigation department and clear the encroachments. Then, show me wherever the highway is obstructed and leave it to me to fix it,” he tweeted.