'Gift' of flood for Expressway users

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi six days ago, submerged following moderate rain leading to several accidents on Friday night.

The 118-km long Expressway (NH275), built at a cost of Rs 8,480 crore flooded near the Ramanagara district exactly at the same location where it had submerged for days during the heavy rains in September 2022 when the Expressway was still under construction.

Following criticism from the citizens last year, the NHAI promised to fix the issue. The incident led to severe criticism against the authorities, with many alleging that the Expressway was built in a hurry to open it before the ensuing elections.

"This shows the ignorance of the authorities and the government towards public safety," said a commuter, Rajesh. "I wish our PM Modi had checked the highway before inaugurating it," he added. A car turned off in the middle of a waterlogged road and a lorry approaching from behind rammed into it.

However, the driver, Vikas, escaped unhurt, he later expressed disappointment and posted a tweet, "Who will be held responsible for this?" he asked. While inaugurating the expressway, PM Modi had called it a ‘gift’ to the people of Karnataka. The Expressway would reduce the travel time between Bengaluru and Mysuru to 75 minutes from the current time of three hours.