Bengaluru: The state govt has objected to the Centre not considering Karnataka’s high-density railway corridors for the proposed quadrupling project. Infrastructure development minister MB Patil said at a press conference here on Friday, that railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had announced seven such corridors, but none from Karnataka was considered. Patil termed it an injustice to the state.Patil said Karnataka has several high-density routes, including Bengaluru–Pune–Mumbai, Bengaluru–Mysuru, Bengaluru–Mangaluru, Bengaluru–Chennai, Bengaluru–Shivamogga, Bengaluru–Vijayapura and Bengaluru–Kalaburagi. The central govt should comprehensively develop these routes as four-line corridors, he said.“Karnataka has a 330km coastline, and its coastal port towns need proper railway connectivity with the hinterland. However, the state has faced injustice in this regard as well. There is inadequate railway connectivity from places such as Mangaluru, Bhatkal, Honnavar, Kundapura and Karwar to major centres such as Bengaluru, Shivamogga and Hubballi,” the minister pointed out.He said he would urge the chief minister to write to the Centre on the issue, and seek a meeting with Ashwini Vaishnaw to personally take up the matter.“In this year’s budget, the central govt announced high-speed rail projects connecting Bengaluru with Chennai and Hyderabad. However, these projects will primarily benefit Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, as trains on neither route will run even 100 km within Karnataka. I immediately raised the issue, and urged that a high-speed rail corridor be developed on the Bengaluru–Hubballi–Pune route. However, the Centre has so far not responded positively to the demand,” Patil said.“We are extending our cooperation on a 50:50 cost-sharing basis to ensure that railway projects are taken up quickly. This is not the case in other states. Yet, the central govt is not giving Karnataka the same priority that it is giving Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh,” Patil alleged.
