Kushalnagar: Seven months after initiating the tender process for constructing an Access-Controlled Four-Lane Expressway between Mysuru and Kushalnagar, ground-works have commenced in phases wherever land has been acquired and on Government-owned land as well.

Work has started on the creation of a bypass road near Bylakuppe at Manchadevanahalli on the Kodagu-Mysuru border. Levelling work is underway with the assistance of four to five earth- movers. The terrain in the area is hilly, with numerous undulations that require levelling. This bypass road will connect Bylakuppe, the Golden Temple and Guddehosur, where the Expressway terminates.

The Mysuru to Kushalnagar section of the National Highway (NH-275) will commence at Paschimavahini in Srirangapatna and conclude near Guddehosur at the beginning of Kushalnagar. The current estimated cost of the project is Rs. 4,000 crore.

Managers at the work-site informed Star of Mysore that the contract for land levelling and bypass road construction has been awarded to D.Y. Uppar and Sons Company, based in Vijayapura. The company has brought in 30 workers from Vijayapura, with more workers scheduled to join the teams after Deepavali.

“We have received maps and survey numbers of the acquired land and Government-owned land. We are currently working on levelling these lands,” stated a site engineer.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) issued tenders for the project under the Hybrid Annuity Mode in September 2022, with the technical bids being opened in mid-February 2023, attracting 11 bidders. The 92.3 km road connecting Paschimavahini and Guddehosur is part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana Phase-I programme, with a target completion date in 2026.

This greenfield project’s alignment will run parallel to the existing National Highway (NH-275) and will link with the 119-km Mysuru-Bengaluru Expressway, reducing travel time and enhancing freight movement. The land acquisition process commenced in 2020. The work will be executed in phases, including Guddehosur to Kushalnagar Bypass to Hassan-Periyapatna Road Junction (22 km, estimated cost: Rs. 617.14 crore), Hemmige Village, Hassan-Periyapatna Road Junction to Ramanathapura-Terakanambi Road, K.R. Nagar Junction (24.1 km, estimated cost:                                                               Rs. 589.50 crore).

Ramanathapura-Terakanambi Road, K.R. Nagar Junction in Hunsur to Yalachahalli near Yelwal-K.R. Nagar Road Junction (26.5 km, estimated cost: Rs. 659.48 crore) and Yalachahalli near Yelwal K.R. Nagar Road Junction to Srirangapatna bypass near Paschimavahini  (18.985 km, estimated cost: Rs. 662.83 crore).