Revenue Minister R Ashoka on Thursday signed off on a file to create what he said would be “the second Cubbon Park” on 184 acres of land near Yelahanka.
The Cubbon Park-like lung space will come up on land spread across the villages of Bettahalasur, Sondappanahalli and Kadiganahalli outside the city’s municipal limits.
“I have signed the file handing over this land to the horticulture department. The park will be named after Bengaluru founder Kempegowda,” Ashoka told reporters.
The new park will have an amphitheatre, lake and other facilities, according to Ashoka.
“Cubbon Park has a history of 240 years. No government was successful in creating another park like that. For the last one year, we were discussing this plan,” Ashoka said. “After a search, we identified this land which is 10 km from the airport and close to Kempegowda’s birthplace Avati and Yelahanka, which he ruled over,” he said.
Horticulture Minister Munirathna said the new park is located along the Doddaballapur-Hindupur highway. It will be developed by his department. “Companies from Malaysia and Singapore have done presentations proposing development. But we don’t want the public-private partnership (PPP) as there might be legal complications,” he said, citing the example of the NICE project.
The government is already developing a multi-purpose Atal Bihari Vajpayee Park on 320 acres of land at Jarakabande in Yelahanka for which Rs 100 crore has been earmarked.
Stone statue of Kempegowda
The government wants to make a 100-feet-tall statue of Kempegowda using natural rocks at Bettahalasur. “We can make a statue made of bronze or some other material. But the dream of this government is to make a stone monolith of Kempegowda that will be bigger than the Gomateshwara of Shravanabelagola,” Munirathna said, adding that the government is ready to bear the cost “whatever it may be”.
81,000 title deeds
Ashoka announced that 81,582 Alemari (nomadic) communities in 23 districts will be given title deeds on March 27. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai will distribute title deeds at Chikballapur. “Simultaneously, title deeds will be given in other districts,” Ashoka said.