Firoz.T.Totanawala
The Bangalore Metro Reporter
1st November 2011 issue-
THE BITTER TRUTH
METRO LAUNCH- THE HYPE V/S
REALITY
The 6.5 Km stretch of Metro from MG Road to Byappanahalli is tom
tomed as the ultimate solution to the unimaginable traffic woes in Bangalore.
The Metro Corporation has spent crores on the inauguration function. The pomp -
splendour - publicity hype for the Metro service should be seen to believe. The
6.5 km stretch is not even 15% of the Metro project. There was no need for such
extravaganza. The Metro works in other reaches is going on a snail’s pace and
one wonders whether the project will be completed in five years time.
The Namma Metro
service has begun between MG Road and Byappanahalli - a stretch of 6.5 kms. The
BMRCL is boasting this achievement of completing 10% of the Metro work and
giving an impression to the Bangaloreans that the Metro is a great Diwali gift!
It has further spent crores towards the inaugural function of the dedication of
the Metro to the public.
Keeping aside the
emotions of having the prestigious Metro rail in our Garden City, can this really
be called an achievement, by any standard? The Metro should have been completed
by 2010 itself, whereas, by the end of October 2011, only 10% of the work is
completed. It would be a miracle if the entire project is completed by 2015.
Besides, the havoc
caused by the Metro works is incredible and it compounded the already choking
traffic woes. Further, the highly damaged roads due to the Pillar erection and
overhead slab works are also not asphalted which would greatly benefit the
people. As the Metro line passes through high density
traffic roads, one can imagine the plight of the people.
The hardships are there
for the last three years and will continue for another few years. As on now,
there is no guarantee of the Metro phase-1 completion in the near future as the
inaugurated Metro stretch has taken more than four years. The BMRCL admits that
one day delay causes Rs. 85 lakhs due to which the project cost has jumped from
the original estimate of Rs. 5800 crores to more than 12000 crores! One should
not wonder if it crosses 15000 crores by the time, the Phase-1 becomes
operational.
The underground Metro tunnel
work has become the biggest joke. When the BMRCL awarded the contract to
foreign companies for digging the underground tunnel from MG Road to Swastic
Circle and Swastik Circle to Leprosy Hospital in Magadi Road, it publicised the
high technology machines and its capacity. It said that these world famous
machines can dig 100-150 meter tunnel a day and that tunneling work will complete
in about a year and half. But the hard reality is that these machines are
digging 8 to 10 meters per day! One can now have an idea about the time needed
to tunnel almost 9 kms in two reaches.
The 6.5 Kms inaugurated
Metro services which has costed Rs. 1600 crores does no good to the Bangalore
traffic even in that stretch and it also cannot cater to the commuters between Byappanahalli
and MG Road. People from adjoining areas must use another mode of transport
like autos or buses to reach the stations. They cannot bring their vehicles as
there are no parking facilities in any of the six stations along this stretch.
Besides, despite the
boasting of the Metro services being hi-tech and stations tech savvy, ordinary
people face difficulty in swapping the cards, using elevators etc. In addition,
there are restrictions like the restriction of number of people in the station at any time. The BMRCL says that it will allow only
400 people at a time and only after they have left in the train, another batch
of 400 will be allowed inside! Then there is the time restriction of staying
for maximum of 20 minutes in the station! There is fine and penalty for
everything. There is also a restriction in carrying the 10kg luggage for
commuting in the Metro. The BMRCL has banned the entry of people with
illnesses like serious cold, fever, severe cough etc. Then what about people
with other fatal diseases, which cannot be detected on the face value? The list
of restrictions is a long one and suffices to say that they are similar to the
Air passengers. Thank God, the BMRCL has not made it compulsory for the
passengers to get immunized before entering the station!
Whatsoever, one does
not understand the unimaginable hype created for inauguration of 6.5 kms
stretch of Metro services. The newspapers and the electronic media are vying to
give larger than life coverage to the event, which is only a small beginning. When
Namma Metro’s First phase is completed and dedicated to the public, it will be
useful as people can reach South from North or South from West etc. in record
time, saving money and avoiding traffic problems. That would be a real boon.
The current
rush in Metro is because all citizens are queuing up to enjoy a new experience. Once the initial euphoria is over that
is after two or three months, one can get the ground reality of the utility of
the inaugurated Metro stretch. At the end of the day, the Metro services can at
best become one of the things to see in Bangalore
like Cubbon Park, Lalbagh, Vidhana Soudha etc. And that is all.
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