Second phase of Bangalore-Mysore track doubling okayed

Mysore, Feb 1 (UNI) The Railway Board has given green signal to commence the second phase of doubling the Bangalore-Mysore railway track, Railway Board member C H Vijayashankar, MP, said today.

Speaking to newspersons during a mass contact programme in one of the city extensions, he said Board Chairman Batra had agreed to issue the necessary orders to commence the work on the Ramanagaram-Mysore stretch soon, at a Parliamentary Standing Committee on Railways meeting recently in New Delhi.

His assurance came in the wake of the Karnataka Government releasing Rs 25 crore towards the project from the 2005-06 budget.

The State Government had promised to provide another Rs 25 crore in the 2006-07 budget.

Mr Vijayashankar said track doubling was expected to be completed soon between Bangalore and Ramanagaram as the Railway Ministry was releasing its share of Rs 37.5 crore. The second phase between Ramanagaram and Mysore would be taken up at a cost of Rs 87.5 crore as a joint project of the State Government and Railways. The total cost of track doubling was Rs 340 crore, including Rs 90 crore for electrifying the route.

The South Western Railways General Manager had convened a meeting of Members of Parliament of the zone, comprising Mysore, Dakshina Kannada, Hassan and neighbouring districts, here on February 13 to discuss railway projects in the zone, he added.

UNI