Bengaluru, Oct 29 (IANS) BJP Yuva Morcha National President and Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya on Wednesday demanded that Metro fares be reduced as soon as possible in Bengaluru.

He said, “Currently, 10 lakh people travel daily by Metro in Bengaluru, while 45 lakh use Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) buses — meaning 55 lakh citizens already rely on public transport.”

Speaking to reporters at the BJP state headquarters, Jagannath Bhavan, Tejasvi Surya said, “The government should reduce fares for their benefit.”

Criticising the hike in Metro fares, he added, “From Konanakunte to Orion Mall in the city, a one-way Metro trip for a family of four costs Rs 280, while driving a car costs Rs 160. However, the car journey takes 75 minutes. Shouldn’t public transport be encouraged rather than burdened?”

“For example, if a couple travels from Lalbagh to Orion Mall by Metro, it costs Rs 100 and takes 25 minutes. On a bike, it costs only Rs 30. Should the Metro fares be such that more people use it, or should they remain sky-high?” he asked.

“But now, the government seems to think — if you don’t own a car, you won’t get a girl — and that’s why they want to build a tunnel road,” he said sarcastically.

“The Pink Line from Kalena Agrahara to Nagawara was supposed to be completed in 2020. Then the deadline was extended to March 2025, and now to March 2026. On average, every Metro line in Bengaluru is delayed by five to six years,” he said.

“The government claims the delay is due to hard rock obstruction in tunnel construction. Does hard rock occur only for the Metro? Will they get soft rock if they build roads instead?” he quipped.

“The Blue Line to the airport was initially scheduled for completion in 2024. Now they say it will be partially ready by 2026 and fully completed by 2027. God only knows when it will actually happen,” he remarked.

“They have proposed the Tunnel Road on the same alignment as the Sarjapur-Hebbal Metro line. The Metro is planned to be completed by 2031, but even the DPR for the tunnel project is pending. The Sarjapur-Hebbal Metro can carry 69,000 passengers per hour, but this government doesn’t care about that. They only want to serve 1,800 car owners,” he criticised.

“When people ask what MPs are doing — let me remind you, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government came to power, within the first 100 days, we got DPR approval for the JP Nagar-Kempapura Orange Line. But even after one and a half years, no tender has been called. They have stalled it to push their double-decker tunnel plan,” he alleged.

BJP State General Secretary P. Rajeev, State Vice President Malavika Avinash, Bengaluru North District President S. Harish, and Bengaluru Central District President Saptagiri Gowda were present at the press conference.

–IANS

mka/uk