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Work on the four-lane Srirangapatna-Guddehosur highway project, estimated to cost ₹4,000 crore, is expected to start from either May or June. Land acquisition for carrying out the works has commenced in Mysuru district and the project that aims to establish better road connectivity between Mysuru and Kodagu districts is likely to be completed in two-and-a-half years.
Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha said in Madikeri on Saturday that the actual work commences from the point of deviation towards the road leading to Madikeri, bypassing Mysuru, at Srirangapatna (on Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway).
The work will be taken up under Package 3 from Srirangapatna to Periyapatna and Periyapatna to Guddehosur (in Kodagu) under Package 2. “Being a high-budgeted project, the tender process will take about three months’ time. The compensation has to be fixed for the land to be acquired for the road work and trees that are going to be removed for laying the road. A time of one month has been given for finalising the compensation to be awarded to the parties,” he told reporters.
The MP said the majority of the highway work encompasses Mysuru district and a small portion of it would be part of Kodagu district. “It’s going to be a good road infrastructure connecting the two districts.”
Mr. Simha also said the 10-lane Mysuru-Bengaluru Expressway project taken up at a cost of ₹9,500 crore is expected to be completed by Dasara this year. It comprises 6 lanes of access-controlled highway.
Once the project is done, the travel time between the cities is expected to come down, paving the way for economic growth in the highway corridor.
Defending the gas pipeline project in Mysuru city, Mr. Simha, who recently lashed out at his party MLAs and councilors in Mysuru for not coming in support of the project, said it’s the dream project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the idea of establishing an infrastructure supplying piped cooking gas to households, like drinking water supply. The project has been conceptualised for other cities as well.
So far, the project has commenced in 20 cities in the State and will be expanded to other cities and towns and later to the villages, he added.
On the proposed railway connectivity to Kushalnagar, he said the project has to be funded equally by the State and the Union Governments. The project is estimated to cost about ₹1,854 crore.
Justifying the government’s move on the row over ‘hijab’, the MP argued that the dress code in colleges must be complied with and the students must attend classes wearing the clothing recommended by the respective institutions. Former Speaker and MLA K.G. Bopaiah and others were present.
