Bengaluru: The BBMP is planning to ease congestion on Sarjapur Road by taking up road widening and road improvement project, but the idea has been slammed by urban expert Nitin Seshadri.
The BBMP proposes to make Sarjapur Road a six-lane stretch from Outer Ring Road at Iblur Junction till Chakkanahalli Road overbridge, by acquiring 2.05 acres of private land.
But Mr Seshadri told Deccan Chronicle that as a rule, road widening projects should be opposed, except when bottleneck and junction issues have to be addressed. “Land acquisition is a major challenge for the BBMP to take this project forward. Already, a few residents have knocked on the doors of the court to stop the project,” he said.
“The BBMP plans to issue Transferable Development Right (TDR) certificates for the land acquired. But TDR is only an option and not mandatory, making it difficult for the Palike to acquire land. Ideally, the BBMP and state government should allocate money before taking up such a grandiose project,” he pointed out.
“Constructing elevated roads is cheaper than acquiring land for road widening projects. Otherwise, the BBMP should come up with a land acquisition policy similar to that of Namma Metro, which gives land losers the market value. But the BBMP is planning to acquire land at Rs 10,000 per square feet, which is much lower than the market value. The BBMP has identified around 320 properties for the road widening project,” he said.
To decongest Bengaluru, the government should focus on developing alternative cities and towns by providing necessary physical and social infrastructure, he said. On Monday, Bengaluru Development Minister K.J. George held a meeting with BBMP officials to discuss the project.
Mr Prasad said that the BBMP has received 140 objections from the public. Property owners want monetary compensation instead of Transfer of Development Rights (TDR), he said. Mr George directed BBMP Special Commissioner Vijayshankar to convene a meeting with the property owners to resolve the issue.
