Sivananda Circle flyover not getting completed anytime soon

Y Maheswara Reddy | NT

If people who commute between Race Course Road and Hare Krishna Road near Sivananda Circle were hopeful that their woes would end any time soon, that is not going to be, so it seems. With a long-running land acquisition court case yet to see the light of day, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will have to wait for some more time to complete the ramp towards the railway underpass.

The contractor has completed construction of the ramp towards Race Course Road, but is rendered useless because the ramp towards the railway underpass on Hare Krishna Road is incomplete.

The flyover has missed several deadlines. The project, aimed at decongesting traffic on Hare Krishna Road and Kumara Krupa Road, was conceived in 2011 and was approved in 2017, after a gap of six years. Initially, the flyover was estimated to cost Rs 19.8 crore, which escalated to Rs 39.50 crore after its length was extended to 492.84 metres from the earlier plan of 326 metres.

The project was supposed to be completed in nine months but it has to face a lot of hurdles, including land acquisition and cutting of over 20 trees. The BBMP chief commissioner visited the spot in June 2021 and directed his engineers and the contractor to complete the work by October 2021 to facilitate the flyover’s inauguration in November 2021, but the work is incomplete even after three months of the revised deadline.

“BBMP engineers and the contractor are taking a lot of time to complete the pending works. Though the service roads on both sides of the flyover are asphalted, debris and construction material have become a hurdle for the smooth movement of vehicles. I want the authorities concerned to expedite all pending works and complete them as early as possible,’’ said Venkatesh S, a two-wheeler rider

Blaming the BBMP authorities for their “lack of vision and commitment”, Purushotham N, a motorist, opined that construction of the flyover would have been completed long ago “if only the authorities concerned had made attempts to acquire the land without delay”.

“The flyover work has been pending for one or the other reason. Earlier, the authorities said the delay in shifting utilities, acquiring necessary land, and other issues had delayed its construction. Later, they cited the Covid-19 pandemic and shortage of manpower as reasons for the delay. I pray the authorities will complete the pending works without any more delay,’’ said Purushotham.

Meanwhile, BBMP Chief Engineer (Projects) M Lokesh clarified that a pending case in the court has delayed the completion of the pending work (ramp towards the railway underpass). 

“The PIL, filed against the design of the flyover, is scheduled for hearing shortly. If we get clearance from the honourable court, we will need only about 30 days to complete all works that are pending,’’ added Lokesh.