Karnataka: Demands Arise To Name Bengaluru - Mysuru Expressway After 24th King Of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV

After Mysuru - Kodagu MP Pratap Simha suggested naming of the Bengaluru - Mysuru Expressway as ‘Cauvery Expressway’ on the lines of Yamuna Expressway and Ganga Expressway in Uttar Pradesh, new demands regarding the naming of the crucial infrastructure project have emerged.

This time, Congress MLCs from Mandya district have urged Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and union minister Nitin Gadkari to name the Expressway after the 24th Maharaja of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (1884 - 1940).

He established numerous institutions like Indian Institute of Science, State Bank of Mysore, Mysore State Railway, University of Mysore and built irrigation projects like Vani Vilasa Sagara and Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) dam. His reign is regarded as the ‘golden age of Mysore.'

In their letter to Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, MLCs Madhu G. Madegowda and Dinesh Gooligowda said that today’s modern Karnataka was due to the efforts of Maharaja  Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV.

“No Mysurean will forget the benevolence of the royal family as they sold personal jewellery to meet the cost of the construction of KRS dam which provides drinking water and irrigates large tracts of land. Such was the vision of the former ruler towards the future generations. The Cauvery water released from the dam is an important source of water supply, including Mysuru and Bengaluru,” they said in the letter, reports The Hindu.

The 10-lane Bengaluru - Mysuru expressway reduces travel time between the major cities of Karnataka to less than 90 minutes from the current three hours.

The 117 km long expressway, taken up with over Rs 8,000 crore, is being developed under two packages. The first one runs from Bengaluru to Nidaghatta in Maddur taluk for around 56 km. The second package, which is 61 km long, connects Nidaghatta to Mysuru.

Bhopal-based Dilip Buildcon was awarded the contract to construct both the packages — 56 km from Bengaluru to Nidagatta and 61 km from Nidagatta to Mysore.

The scope of the work also includes the construction of an 8-km-long elevated corridor, nine major bridges, 42 minor bridges, 64 underpasses, 11 overpasses, four Road-Over-Bridges (ROBs) and five bypasses.

This expressway stretch consists of six bypasses at Bidadi, Ramanagara, Channarayapatna, Maddur, Mandya and Srirangapatna. These are expected to reduce traffic congestion and enhance road safety.