Set deadline for delayed Koramangala flyover, Karnataka HC tells BBMP

The Karnataka High Court on Thursday, July 29, directed the state government and the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to spell out the timeline for completing the four-lane Ejipura-Kendriya Sadana flyover in Koramangala. The HC issued the notice in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed with regard to the construction of the 2.5 km-long flyover. The bench comprising Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice NS Sanjay Gowda has asked the BBMP commissioner to file a statement of objections by August 30 detailing the time limit within which the construction will be completed, a DH report stated. The petition was filed by Adinarayan Shetty, a resident of Koramangala 5th Block.

Highlighting that the tender for the flyover construction was floated in 2014, the petitioner said that the contract was given to M/s Simplex Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. in May 2017. As per a reported in The Hindu, the petition stated that the construction with an estimated cost of Rs 203 crore was supposed to be completed in a period of 30 months from the date of issuance of work order. However, it stands completed only up to 50%. The pace of construction has remained slow even after grant of time extension till December 2020 was provided, following the imposition of a penalty for delay beyond 30 months. According to the original timeline, the project was expected to be ready by November-end in 2019

The Ejipura flyover project was initiated under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme. The finances for the construction were to be shared between the Union government (35%), Karnataka government (15%) and the BBMP (50%).

The flyover meant to connect the end of the Inner Ring Road with Hosur Road, is aimed to bypass the busy Ejipura Junction and the Koramangala Sony Signal Junction. However, work came to a standstill due to the pandemic-induced lockdowns. Earlier in 2020, TNM had reported that the work on the Ejipura-Kendriya Vidyalaya flyover previously hit roadblocks due to various reasons including delay of payment to the workers by the BBMP, the transfer of defence and private land for public use, and clearance for felling of 40 trees on the stretch.