BENGALURU: The proposed Chamarajanagar-Bengaluru railway line has been languishing for the past one year after a budgetary allocation of only Rs 10 crore was made in the last year’s budget. The railway line, costing Rs 1,382 crore, that runs through Kollegal, Malavalli and Kanakapura, was approved by the UPA government.
The original plan was to extend the rail link till Satyamangalam forests in Tamil Nadu with the total route length of 260 km.
Railway activists pointed out that no permission has been given to even carry out a survey near Satyamangalam forests, and demanded that the Karnataka government intervene to give the project a push.
Mr Yogendra, a railway activist, told Deccan Chroncile, “This was one of the big demands of the people of Kanakapura, Malavalli and other towns along the Bengaluru-Chamarajanagar route. The project will bring vast parts of the state, including commercial hubs like Kanakapura, Malavalli and Kollegal on the railway map of the country. This project has entered the Pink Book, which the Railways will maintain every year."
Subsequently, the project was changed to end the route at Chamarajanagar. This route would be shorter and also give a push to the economy in vast stretches of Bengaluru Rural, Mandya and Chamarajanagar.
Elected representatives and other stakeholders said that the project will give a boost to tourism and growth of Chamarajanagar by giving it a direct link to Bengaluru. Besides, commercial centres like Malavalli and Kollegal are supposed to benefit with better connectivity to Bengaluru.
Now, passengers from Chamarajanagar have to reach Mysuru, which is a distance of 60 km, and from there they have to travel to Bengaluru, which is another 139 km.
“Once a project enters the 'Pink Book', preliminary works related to the project should start. But still, expenditure incurred under various heads of accounts of the project is delayed. The state government is not showing any interest in acquiring the land, and it should push the project,” said Mr Purshotham, an urban expert.
