BENGALURU: The Karnataka cabinet has cleared a Rs 2,095 crore project on Wednesday to develop 155km of outlying roads connecting the city with its suburbs and satellite towns .

The project will cost Rs 13.5 crore per km. Asked what sort of roads they'd be -cement-layered (whitetopping) or a four-lane one -law minister T B Jayachandra said: “It'll be a normal two-lane road connecting outer areas with the city.“

M Lakshminarayana, principal secretary, public works department , said the cost is on the higher side as the project valuation includes land acquisition cost.The four roads connect Hoskote, Nelamangala, Anekal, Jigani and Harohalli with the city and its suburbs.

According to K S Krishna Reddy, managing director, Karnataka Road Development Corporation Ltd .(KRDCL), land acquisition cost for the entire project is Rs 550 crore. “This apart, we have to consider improvement of junctions, grade sep arators and underground drainage construction along the routes, apart from shifting utility lines. But the biggest component is land acquisition,“ said Reddy said.

The cabinet has also approved a Rs 275-crore plan to study 25 district headquarter cities and towns and plan an outer ring road (ORR) for each of them.

“A high-level panel headed by additional chief secretary (UDD) will study the 25 towns and plan construction of ORRs that will bypass them,“ Jayachandra said.

The law minister said the committee will study the cities and towns over a period of five years.

Other decisions

Government to bring a new law for urban development by merging all existing town and country planning acts with other acts. National Law School of India University will draft the law Fortified rice sanctioned for 10.5 lakh children getting midday meals in Koppal and two adjoining districts Smart city implementation and review committee to be set up to monitor ongoing projects under the scheme Rs 192.5 crore sanctioned to build infrastructure to house a women's hostel and government medical college in Lady Curzon and Bowring Hospital, Bengaluru

