Light at the end of underpass

BBMP keen to finish the much-delayed Kundalahalli underpass by March.

By Y Maheswara Reddy | NT

Bengaluru: For the residents of Whitefield and adjoining areas, who have to regularly negotiate the traffic gridlocks at Kundalahalli junction, the underpass project that is nearing completion holds out hope. The underpass is part of the signal free corridor project on the Old Airport Road.

The BBMP is keen to complete the Rs 25-crore Kundalahalli underpass project by March. “We are making all efforts to open the underpass to the public by the end of March or first week of April. There was a delay to complete the work due to the hurdles in acquiring the land for widening the road,” said BBMP Chief Engineer (Projects) M Lokesh.

Missed deadlines

The delay in completing the 281-metre long underpass has become a hassle for thousands of motorists who pass through this junction. The underpass was supposed to be ready by 2019. Later the BMBP had fixed many more deadlines such as April, October in 2020 and February and May 2021 and later the deadline extended to September 2021 and now it is March 2022.

Residents happy

“I came to know that the BBMP authorities have completed the land acquisition that was pending for quite a long time. The progress of the underpass for the last one month is quite amazing. I think a portion of the land at Tubarahalli side is yet to be acquired. I hope the BBMP authorities will complete the formalities as early as possible,’’ said Prabhu Patil, former president of Rohan Vasantha Apartments Residents Welfare Association.

He said the then Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa had visited the Kundalahalli underpass project in August 2019 and directed the BBMP engineers to complete the work in six months. “The BBMP authorities were able to acquire the required land with the additional budget allocated for this project. Earlier, the road width was just 3 meters and now it has been increased to 4.5 meters to avoid traffic congestion,’’ he said.

The residents of Whitefield and other areas and those working at ITPL have been waiting for the BBMP to complete the construction of Kundalahalli underpass. This pass will connect prominent areas such as Export Promotion Industrial Park, International Tech Park Bangalore, Brookefield, Varthur and Whitefield.

Lingaraj Urs, a social activist, has said the Kundalahalli underpass would ensure seamless access to Whitefield and other areas. “This has been an initiative of our honourable MLA Arvind Limbavali who was instrumental in resolving land acquisition issues and is now monitoring the progress of the work very closely,” Urs said.