Krishna Byre Gowda Directs Faster Completion of Wind Tunnel Underpass; Bengaluru Project to Be Finished Within Three Months
Bengaluru, July 10: Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda has directed officials and the contractor to expedite construction of the Wind Tunnel Underpass near the U.R. Rao Satellite Centre on Old Airport Road by deploying additional manpower and completing the project within the next three months.
The minister inspected the ongoing works at the Wind Tunnel Junction on Friday and reviewed the progress of the long-pending infrastructure project aimed at easing traffic congestion on one of Bengaluru’s busiest corridors.
During the inspection, Krishna Byre Gowda instructed the contractor to increase the workforce and accelerate the pace of construction to ensure timely completion of the underpass.
Officials informed the minister that the relocation of major underground utilities, including BWSSB water pipelines, sewer lines, BESCOM cables, optical fibre cables (OFCs) and other utility infrastructure, has already been completed. Construction of the retaining walls is currently in progress.
The minister directed officials to complete the retaining wall work at the earliest so that the remaining phases of the project could proceed without delay.
BBMP Chief Commissioner Maheshwar Rao said every effort is being made to carry out the work without significantly disrupting traffic movement.
He said temporary diversion roads will be constructed on land belonging to the Ministry of Defence, ISRO, National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) and adjoining private properties on both sides of the junction to facilitate uninterrupted vehicular movement during construction.
75% of Project Completed
According to officials, the underpass project is being executed at an estimated cost of ₹19 crore. The project involves construction of a 300-metre-long, four-lane underpass, with 7.5-metre-wide carriageways on both sides.
Authorities said approximately 75 per cent of the work has already been completed, including utility shifting, construction of RCC retaining walls, development of service roads and fabrication of the pre-cast box segments that will be installed in the central section of the underpass.
Next Phase of Construction
With utility relocation now complete, the project has entered the retaining wall construction stage. Once that work is completed, the pre-cast box structures will be installed in the middle section, followed by construction of the final service roads.
The inspection was attended by BBMP Commissioner Venkata Chalapathi, Chief Engineer Vijay Kumar Haridas, Hemalatha, and other senior officials overseeing the project.
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