Mysuru: MP Pratap Simha took the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) officials to task for unnecessarily spending public money by taking up the ten-lane road work of just 590 metre at a cost of Rs. 5 crore near Columbia Asia Hospital junction.

Addressing the media after the inspection of the ten-lane road work and gathering information from the officials yesterday, he said that even though the NHAI officials knew that in another three months the work on the ten-lane Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway work is going to start and a flyover is going to come up near the Columbia Asia Hospital junction from Hotel Atrium, still the officials have gone ahead with the work. He wondered why the money was being unnecessarily spent when they knew that the road has to be dug up again for the flyover work.

He also had noticed the shortcomings of the work going on as the divider on the road was broken and gave them direction to set it right, he added.

Speaking about the work on the ten-laning of the Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway at a cost of Rs.7,000 crore, which will begin from September from ten places simultaneously, he said that the road will bypass Mandya, Maddur, Channapatna, Ramanagaram, Bidadi towns and the 117 kms distance from Kengeri can be covered in just 90 minutes.

The ten-lane road will have two service roads on either side and both of them will be double roads. Rs.3,000 crore has been spent on land acquisition, he added.

Former Mayor Sandesh Swamy, BJP leader M. Rajendra, NHAI Assistant Executive Engineer Chandrappa, Assistant Engineer Tarakesh and others were present.