Congress today slammed the ruling BJP in Karnataka after pics of the damaged expansion joint of the newly inaugurated Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway surfaced two days after the highway was thrown open by PM Narendra Modi. Hitting out at the BJP, Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar accused the state government of taking a 40 per cent commission in development projects. He claimed that nowhere in the world does a road gets damaged days after the inauguration.
“Where in the world does a road becomes damaged, a day after its inauguration? In Karnataka! Welcome to the Land of 40% Commission! The Bangalore-Mysore expressway decided to speak for itself, exposing once again deep-rooted corruption under BJP Govt!” said Shivakumar in a tweet.
Where in the world does a road becomes damaged, a day after its inauguration?
In Karnataka!
Welcome to the Land of 40% Commission!The Bangalore-Mysore expressway decided to speak for itself, exposing once again deep rooted corruption under BJP Govt! pic.twitter.com/pR4RxyaauA— DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) March 15, 2023
Aam Aadmi Party has also slammed the BJP over the damage to the road. “A living example of Modi’s ‘corruption’! Modi inaugurated it 2 days back. Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway,” said AAP sharing a photo of the damaged expressway.
Two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway, several outfits staged protests at a toll plaza yesterday, opposing the National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI) decision to levy charges without proper service roads and passes for local residents. Opposition Congress workers too joined the protesters and held demonstrations.
The protesters are opposed to collecting toll fees until the entire project is completed. They have also expressed reservations regarding service roads not being built, and the toll rate fixed being too high.
Being the first day of toll collection, some technical glitches also added to the chaos, making commuters wait for a long time, due to congestion.
Many cab drivers, who commute on the stretch daily, hit out at NHAI authorities for mismanagement, charging high toll fees for short distances, and no proper service road.
“I’m going for 20 kilometres on this stretch, for which I have to pay Rs 147, where should we go? If there was a proper service road, I wouldn’t have come here, how should I go?” a taxi driver asked.
From Mandya, tomorrow, 12th March, the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway would be dedicated to the nation. The foundation stone for the Mysuru-Kushalnagar highway would also be laid. These projects will boost connectivity and socio-economic growth. pic.twitter.com/VC4P0Lau7CNarendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2023
Speaking in Bengaluru, Karnataka Congress President D K Shivakumar said it was not right for the Prime Minister to have inaugurated the Expressway, without the completion of the project and having no proper service roads to help local residents. “It was done for the sake of politics ahead of elections and not for the sake of people,” he asserted.
On March 12, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the 118-km Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway project. It will reduce the travel time between Bengaluru and Mysuru from around three hours to about 75 minutes, according to officials.
The Rs 8,480 crore project involved six-laning of the Bengaluru-Nidaghatta-Mysuru section of NH-275, and will act as a catalyst for socio-economic development in the region, they said. (With PTI Inputs)