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Given the current  political ecosystem, I feel it sub-urban rail will get passed this time!

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Thanks MP and Minister AnanthKumar and P.C.Mohan for taking out time and getting all those people for the meeting with Railway Minister. Lets see how far we will get the going for Bangalore Suburban Rail. Also thanks to CM of GOK writing letter to Railway Minister for Suburban Rail.

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The demand for a suburban rail network for Bengaluru has got a boost with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah writing to the railway minister requesting him to include the project in the railway budget he is set to present on February 26.

The letter dated February 12, addressed to Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, a copy of which is with Deccan Herald, reads, “The proposal for (a) suburban railway has been with the railways from October 28, 2013.

The implementation of the suburban rail system will not only improve the connectivity between Bangalore and the towns in its hinterland but will also help in reducing dependence on personal vehicles and would contribute to growth along the transit corridor. I request you therefore to consider our proposal positively and communicate the approval of the railways at the earliest to this much-anticipated project. I hope that this project would be included in the ensuing (sic) railway budget.”

The letter further states that Rites Ltd, a multi-disciplinary consultancy in transport, infrastructure and related technologies under the ministry of railways, had submitted a feasibility report on the project, recommending its implementation at an estimated cost of Rs 8,759 crore. The letter adds that the Karnataka government had already formed a Bangalore Suburban Rail Corporation Ltd (BSRCL) to enable the implementation of the project and would contribute half of the project cost.

Interestingly, the letter has been sent after activists and non-profit organisations launched a campaign urging the government to take up the matter with the railways. As part of the campaign, 50 letters each were written to the BSRCL which is under the Directorate of Urban Land Transport, the chief minister, the chairman of the railway board, Union ministers D V Sadananda Gowda and Ananth Kumar, Bangalore Central MP, P C Mohan, PWD Minister H C Mahadevappa, former Union ministers M Veerappa Moily and K H Muniyappa, Urban Development Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake and Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

Petition to PM

One of the activists, Sanjeev Dyamannavar, even sent a petition to the Prime Minister’s Office which referred it to the railway board for appropriate action. It must be mentioned that in February 2014, the railway board and the general manager of South Western Railway, Hubballi, had corresponded on the proposed project, seeking clarifications. In March 2014, the SWR gave its consent to the railway board to go ahead with the Bengaluru suburban rail as per a Rites report.

Prior to that in January 2014, Bangalore South MP and now Union minister Ananth Kumar had requested the then railway minister Mallikarjun Kharge to approve the proposal on priority.       http://www.deccanherald.com/content/461695/cm-bats-city-suburban-train.html

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But sadly not even a mention of Namma Railu in budget. Another year to wait? Or will it be passed via "Sugrivajne"(ordinance route?)..

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Commuter Railway Service for Bengaluru – What ails the project?

“Where there is a will there is a railway, where there is no will there is a survey”

Commuter Rail Services are trains which run on the tracks of Indian Railways around and thru the city of Bengaluru connecting surrounding suburban growth centers of Tumkur, Doddballapur, Chikballapur, Bangarpet, Anekal & Ramangaram and the areas in between. These trains traverse approx. 400 kms thru some developed & developing growth areas offering massive potential to do Transit Oriented Development (TOD) and offer on time & reliable connectivity for the people who live & work in these regions. In Bengaluru it can even connect the Airport from all these places. What more can one ask for in terms of connectivity? But alas simple solutions are not worthy of consideration for governments which rely on showing eye candy to the electorate in the hope of charming them like a kid in a toy shop.

This idea has been a success world over & serves as backbone even in Indian cities. The best examples being Mumbai & Chennai which have suburban services running for a long time. It was mooted for Bengaluru almost 25 years ago and included in various master plans & mentioned in CTTP as an imperative, but yet nobody seemed to be bothered. Praja RAAG dusted off the cobwebs in 2009 and in association with Prof Sitaram of CiSTUP made a call to action report in 2010. After much lobbying and 5 Years hence various govts have come and gone but haven’t had the will to make it happen.

Another railway budget has come & gone from the “acche din” govt. But there has been no mention of Commuter Railway for Bengaluru. The biggest beneficiary of these services is to the people of the state, hence the blame for this is not with the center but with the state govt. So what did they not do

1. Did not display political will – The govt of the day has the wherewithal to announce multi crore elevated highways which destroy the city and induce more motor vehicle demand in the name of congestion elimination but do not have the will to push thru a proposal like commuter rail. It is clear by the lack of awareness of this by any of the MLA’s or cabinet minister in the state. Ask them the details & most will be clueless. But they will tell you which elevated highway is being proposed without fail.
2. Incompetent politics – We have had the fortune of having 3 ministers from Karnataka associated with the Indian Railways over the past 4 years. KH Muniyappa, Mallikarjun Kharge & Sadanand Gowda. At one point there was even the same party in both center & state but the politics of these confluences failed to deliver anything for the state. So what is the quality of politics being practiced by these parties where outcome for the people is not feasible?
3. Slow on procedure – A DPR was commissioned in late 2013 with a view of finishing it by July 2014 and kickstarting the process. After almost a year of overrun the DPR has reportedly been completed on the week the Railway Budget is being read out. Some common sense would have made the govt hurry the process up by atleast a couple of months so some arrangements could have been worked out with the Indian railways before the budget. It’s a bummer to send out a letter a week before the railway budget. Now you will wait a whole year before the next budget if you want to have it announced.
4. Elite capture of solution space – There is a strong lobby of new gen business like IT sector whose leadership don’t have empathy for the problems of the masses. They have always put their weight behind elitist solutions revolving around the car & the road and rarely towards mass transit solutions like Commuter Rail. It is easy for them to come back when the solution fails and clamour for more or even disown the state and move. Its residents cannot afford this use & throw attitude. This has also been a stumbling block for commuter rail and the govt of the day seems to be listening to these rather than doing what is right.

Considering all these issues, one can safely conclude that unless the state government gets its act together and wants to make it happen this is going to be a long road. I don’t even want to go into how it is putting unsustainable road widening & flyover building programs when the rest of the world is tearing it down. If we don’t learn the right lessons we will head the China way, which for some strange is being looked upon as a successful “development” story.  Its up to the people to realize the value of this mode of transport & make the representation to the state government. Maybe its time they learnt a lesson.

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