Karnataka Cabinet approves construction of tunnel road, skydeck, and Indira canteens 

The Karnataka Cabinet has given in-principal administrative approval for construction of one tunnel road, skydeck, and establishing 52 new Indira Canteens in Bengaluru on Thursday.

The Karnataka Cabinet has given in-principal administrative approval for construction of one tunnel road, skydeck, and establishing 52 new Indira Canteens in Bengaluru on Thursday.

The Cabinet has given green signal for construction of the 18.5 km twin-tube tunnel road between Hebbal flyover (Esteem Mall) and Silk Board Junction flyover. The estimated project cost is ₹12,690 crore. The Cabinet gave approval for the twin-tube tunnel as this has been done in Mumbai and according to Indian Road Congress norms. The feasibility study conducted by the Altinac Consulting Engineering Inc. also suggested construction of a single-tube tunnel for which estimated cost is slightly lesser than the twin model. 

The project will be implemented on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) method. In the meeting, it was opined that the tunnel can be constructed as a toll road in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model by 40% Viability Gap Funding (VAF) by the State government. If no company comes forward for the construction on BOT method even after two tenders, the work can be implemented by Engineering Procurement Contract (EPC) basis by collecting the toll revenue by the government on Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) basis, the Cabinet decision said.

The State Cabinet also gave the nod for building a 250 m-high skydeck near NICE road at Hemmigepura. The estimated cost of the project is ₹500 crore. An amount of ₹25 crore has been earmarked under the Brand Bengaluru scheme in the latest Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) budget. BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath has proposed sharing of 50% by the State government and 50% by the BBMP, sources said.

The Letter of Acceptance was given to Designtree Services Consultants Pvt. Ltd. as they were the only technically qualified bidder in the global tender for preparation of Detailed Project Report. 

The Cabinet gave approval for construction of 52 Indira Canteens at the cost of ₹220 crore. While the State will bear 50% of the expenses, the BBMP will bear the other 50%. At present, there are 175 Indira Canteens in Bengaluru.