The Namma Metro project received flak for repeated delays and cost escalations from ‘Metro Man’ E. Sreedharan on Tuesday.

Sreedharan said that Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) is suffering from ‘ego’ issues, which led to the move away from Delhi Metro Rail Corporation. Subsequently, BMRCL got bogged down. Pointing to the delay in starting operations, Mr. Sreedharan said that the financial condition of Namma Metro would suffer once its loans became payable. “They (metro companies) will always be able to raise funds because the government stands guarantee, but if they cannot repay, the government will have to step in and repay these loans,” he said. He disclosed that DMRC withdrew as Prime Consultants for Namma Metro because of the Majestic interchange. “We predicted that Majestic would be BMRCL’s waterloo. Look at what has happened,” he said adding that people who can be held accountable should be in charge of BMRCL instead of IAS officers. “BMRCL has changed five Managing Directors. Their technical directors were shifted out last year. You should never change horses in the middle of a race,” he said.

You should never change horses in the middle of a race