Bengaluru, Sep 28 : In a relief to software professionals and East Bengaluru residents, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has approved 12.34 acres of land to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) for road construction from Lower Agaram to Sarjapur.





'The ministry has given preliminary approval for another 10.77 acres. It used to take about an hour to reach the Bellandur area from MG Road. Once this road is constructed, the time will reduce to 5-8 minutes,' Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar shared the information to the media at the Vidhana Soudha following the discussion with Lieutenant General Basant Kumar Repswal, the Commandant of ASC Centre and College.



He said that this would resolve the traffic congestion issues for reaching the IT hubs.



'The MoD has decided to cooperate with the state government. The tender for the first phase of the road construction, covering 3.50 km, has been called for an amount of Rs 35 crore. The ministry still needs to release 10.77 acres of land for new road construction, including at Trinity Circle and Ejipura,' he said.



He said that the ministry has already handed over 12.34 acres to BBMP. 'We have invited and congratulated Lieutenant General Basant Kumar Repswal, who is retiring on the 30th of this month, for his cooperation in this matter,' he said.



He said that this project will greatly benefit Bengaluru citizens, especially those heading to the IT hub and residents of East Bengaluru.



'I was receiving 8-10 emails daily regarding traffic congestion there. In this context, officials and I visited the site for assessment. It seems we have now found a solution to this problem," he noted.



He said that a proposal will be made to allocate two acres of land for the entry point of the tunnel road near the Hop Dairy Farm by Hebbal.



"I have made significant efforts to obtain this land from the Defense Ministry and have worked through the paperwork. I have been in constant contact with the ministry, making requests. We met with the ministers and the Prime Minister to submit our appeal," he said.



When asked what demands the Defense Ministry had regarding the land transfer, he replied, "The ministry has requested that alternative basic facilities be provided for the land, and we will comply with that."



/IANS