Minister for Railways Mallikarjun Kharge has announced the establishment of Bangalore Rail Vikas Corporation that will oversee the implementation of ‘Namma Railu,’ a proposed commuter railway network for the City.
Prof M V Rajeev Gowda — the founder of Bangalore Needs You Foundation, a citizens’ group that has launched a campaign for a commuter railway network for the City — told reporters on Monday that a petition, signed by 40 elected representatives, was submitted to Kharge on Saturday when he inaugurated several amenities at the Banaswadi railway station.
The petition listed three demands — in-principle approval for the Bangalore suburban rail service from the Ministry of Railways, approval of 50 per cent stakeholder agreement in the Special Purpose Vehicle being set up for implementation of the project between the Ministry of Railways and government of Karnataka, and implementation of Phase-IA of the Bangalore suburban rail service. The minister had okayed the proposal, according to Gowda.