Friday, September 9 2005 14:06 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Bangalore: Karnataka would enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Union Civil Aviation Ministry on re-operationalisation of Mysore airport on September 23, said the State's Infrastructure Principal Secretary Vinay Kumar today (Sept 9, 2005).

Kumar said the Centre has sanctioned Rs 40 crore in this regard, and the Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel would be present at the signing ceremony.

A sum of Rs 94 crore is also being spent on terminal buildings and new runways at Mangalore airport, he said at the annual convention programme of Bangalore Management Association.

Steps are being taken to get night landing facility for Hubli airport, according to him. Deccan Aviation has assured that once they get a new aircraft by October end, there will be direct connectivity from Hubli/Belgaum to Delhi/Mumbai, he added.

Kumar said Rs 20 crore is being spent to further develop the Belgaum airport, adding, the Jindal Vijayanagar Steel Company in Bellary has agreed to allow commercial flights to operate to and from its facility there.

The Hassan-Bangalore rail line would be thrown open for freight traffic from next month, he said.

Karnataka Government has suggested to the Railway Ministry that instead of undertaking the doubling up of Mysore-Bangalore rail line and electrification on the route simultaneously at a cost of Rs 410 crore, it can first complete he twin-track initiative at a cost of Rs 300 crore.

Kumar said the feasibility study on a rail link between he city and the Bangalore international airport, which is scheduled to open for commercial operations in April 2008, has been completed and now the proposal would be forwarded for Government clearance.

Given the projected air traffic, this rail link, proposed to be undertaken in partnership with the Railways, would definitely be a commercial viable option, he said.

Kumar said a high-speed interchange between the new airport and the city is also planned with an investment of Rs 38 crore to Rs 40 crore.

On the Metro project for Bangalore, which has 2.5 million vehicles for a population of 6.5 million, he said the stage of having a fresh thinking or revised look, is over, and the Government is keen to take it up soon.

The State Government is preparing project reports seeking to ease the infrastructure woes of Bangalore. The Government wants to take up the projects, estimated to cost Rs 6,000 crore, pertaining to peripheral ring road, flyovers and underpasses, dedicated bus lanes, comprehensive drainage system and solid waste management, among others, Kumar said.

The State would seek 35 per cent of this cost from the National Urban Renewable Mission, he said.