Bengaluru: Delays in land acquisition by Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) and the failure of South Western Railway (SWR) to clear encroachments have been cited as the main reasons for the slow progress of Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project (BSRP), according to a govt summary.The assessment stated that these factors have significantly slowed a mass transit initiative aimed at easing congestion in the city. The project had run into major trouble earlier this year after infrastructure major L&T terminated its contract, citing the failure of Karnataka Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation (K-Ride), the nodal agency for BSRP, to hand over unencumbered work fronts and adequate land.
Views recorded by various departments and K-Ride — said to have been placed before the cabinet last week — stated: “It is evident from the… details that the delay in land acquisition by KIADB remains the primary hindrance to the execution of works.”According to a status report presented to the cabinet last week, which approved the Rs 16,000-crore project for corridors 2 and 4 to be re-tendered, the infrastructure development department (IDD) said the total land requirement for the two corridors was 283.1 acres. Of this, 218.5 acres have been handed over to K-Ride, while the remaining land has been pending since 2023.The report noted that corridor 2 spans about 9km, while corridor 4 extends to nearly 12km, with delays in land acquisition affecting work on both stretches.It further stated that K-Ride had sought KIADB’s intervention to acquire additional private land following changes in alignment proposed by the railways. “Further, the decision taken in Sept 2023 to accommodate further quadrupling of tracks by the railways has pushed the project outward by 4.6 meters, needing additional private land acquisition of 7.5 acres,” the department said.Rising land costsKIADB is yet to complete acquisition of 5.8 acres required for corridor 2 and 49.4 acres for corridor 4. The departments noted that rising land costs have emerged as a serious financial concern. While the original detailed project report had estimated land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement costs at Rs 1,470 crore, the acquisition cost has now escalated to about Rs 5,000 crore. As per the agreement between Indian Railways and the Karnataka govt, the state must bear the entire land acquisition cost.The financial strain has also affected other corridors. The finance department has asked IDD and K-Ride to “put on hold” corridors 1 and 3, with land acquisition along these lines halted due to a “delay in approval of alignment drawings by SWR”.Encroachments have been flagged as another major hurdle. Of the 266 encroachments identified along corridor 2, 153 are yet to be cleared, while 25 encroachments remain on corridor 4. Four of the 17 Indian Railways quarters are also obstructing work on corridor 4.The summary also cited the “non-inclusion” of defence land in the feasibility report and delays in securing approvals from defence authorities as additional obstacles.
