Bengaluru suburban rail project finds a mention in Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget

BENGALURU: The long pending suburban rail project for Bengaluru got a definitive push on Saturday with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman making a formal announcement in the Budget and committing to 20% of equity contribution.

“Suburban train project at a cost of Rs 18,600 crore will be implemented in Bengaluru. The Centre will contribute 20% of the funding and give external funding assistance of up to 60% of the cost,” said the Finance Minister, who also represents Karnataka in the Rajya Sabha.

Although the finance minister’s announcement is not new and a similar statement was made in the last budget too, the iteration signals the government’s keenness on the project. In 2018-19 budget, the Centre had announced to take up the project at a cost of Rs 17,000 crore. In 2019 July, Sitharaman presenting her maiden budget had allocated a token fund of Rs 1 crore.

As of now, the 148-km suburban rail project, which is expected to provide railway connection to areas like Outer Ring Road and Electronic City where large number of IT companies are located, is pending before the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) for approval. According to railway officials, the final Cabinet note for the suburban rail project will be placed before the CCEA once it gets clearance from the Finance Ministry. The Finance Minister’s mention about the Centre’s commitment to the project is seen by some as an indication that the cabinet note could get the ministry’s approval soon.
However, some citizens are skeptical about the government's seriousness about the much awaited project and say that mentioning it in the budget is of no significance. “It makes no difference. Instead, the finance minister should have okayed the cabinet note which is pending for approval over the past few months,” urban transport expert Sanjev Dyamannavar told ET.

The project to be implemented by the special purpose vehicle Karnataka Railway Development Corporation, will get 20% funding from the Centre and the state each and the remaining 60% of the funding is to be raised by external financial lenders.