NHAI to execute Peripheral Ring Road project

The Bangalore Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) project, which has been in the limbo for the last four years, will be implemented by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

A decision to hand over the project to the NHAI was taken at a meeting of the State Executive Committee (SEC) headed by Governor Rameshwar Thakur on Tuesday.

The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) was initially entrusted with the task of implementing the PRR project. The BDA had carried out the preliminary survey in 2004 and the route alignment was frozen.

However, when the new Congress-JD (S) government came to power proclaiming 'pro-farmer' policy, the PRR project was put on the backburner since it involved acquisition of agricultural land.

This apart, the BDA too did not show much interest in taking the project forward from the drawing board stage. One section of the PRR (4-lane) connecting Tumkur Road-Magadi-Road-Mysore Road-Kanakapura Road-Bannerghatta Road-Hosur Road (41 kilometres) has been completed by Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises (NICE). This section of the PRR is part the Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project being developed by NICE.

The remaining stretch of the PRR (106 kilometres) connecting Tumkur Road-Bellary Road-Old Madras Road-Whitefield-Varthur Road-Sarjapura Road-Hosur Road was to be developed by the BDA. The PRR circumnavigates the city at a radial distance between 2.8 kilometres to 11.5 kilometres from the existing Outer Ring Road.

The project involves acquisition of about 2,050 acres of land and is expected to cost Rs 1,600 crore. The proposed PRR project is a 6-lane bi-directional divided carriageway having 3-lanes on each side.

It is aimed at further decongesting vehicular traffic with the city and paving the way for new residential townships.

In the last four years, the PRR project did not make any progress. "The project cost, which was Rs 550 crore, including acquisition of land in 2004, has now increased three-fold. The SEC has realised that Bangalore Development Authority is not in a position to develop the project considering its financial position. Therefore, it decided to hand over the project to NHAI," sources pointed out.

The NHAI will implement the project in two phases. The entire project will be funded by the Union government.

"The NHAI will also acquire the land. The land acquisition notification will be issued in the coming months," the sources pointed out.

The sources noted that the Union government is keen on completing the PRR project at the earliest.

"Infrastructure projects in Bangalore are being implemented at a very slow pace. With the Bangalore International Airport becoming operational in March this year, the Union government is of the opinion that it should take over some of the major infrastructure development works in the city," the sources added.