MP writes to CM, seeks end to Metro confusion
Bengaluru: Bangalore Central MP, P C Mohan, has written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah expressing concern over the deviation from the Phase 2 detailed project report “completely derailing the whole process” of providing metro connectivity to citizens.
Stating that the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) was changing the alignment “without any technical evaluation”, the BJP parliamentarian disputed the reasons given for the change of the Cantonment metro station’s location.
Rejecting the BMRCL’s claim that railways had issued a rule stating that metro tunnels must be 30 metres under the ground at railway stations, he said: “Railways have confirmed that the tunnel under KSR (Bengaluru City) railway station is passing just eight metres under the ground. This 30-metre rule cited above is only to mislead the public,” the letter states. The MP also noted that the Delhi Metro lines with over 2-km-long tunnels pass below 40 metres in thickly populated areas such as Rajiv Chowk.
He said the BMRCL’s idea of connecting the Cantonment railway station with a travelator was “inconvenient and does not allow for proper integration with and other modes of public transport”.
The metro station at Madina Masjid Ground (Bamboo Bazaar) will ditch the BMTC buses that stop in front of the Cantonment railway station. The MP suggested that the BMRCL seemed to lack strategic planning and vision and resorted to unnecessary shortcuts. He requested the chief minister to hold a joint meeting with the BMRCL, the railway, the Ministry of Urban Development and experts in New Delhi to sort out the issue.