Security staff, which controls Vande Bharat Express on Saturday before his inauguration Prime Minister Narendra Modi. | Photo Credit: PTI
Minister of Transport Ramaling Reddy on Saturday hit the leader of the BJP, including state President Vijayendry and Member for Bengaluru South Tejasvi Surya, for claiming that the yellow line – that will open on August 10 – was only an initiative of the central government.
At a press conference, Mr. Reddy said that BJP was more interested in publicity than work and accused his leaders of ignoring the main financial role of the state. “They do not know the history of the metro project in Karnataka. In 2006, when N. Dharam Singh was the main minister, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone. The metro project is a folk institution, not the property of any political party,” he said.
Financing
He claims that in this project the state government is not a smaller partner, Mr. Reddy has issued documents to show a model of financing. “At every stage of Karnataka, it contributed so much or more than the center, including land acquisition and escalating costs. In phase 1, the state provided 30%plus land, while the center contribution was 25%; in phase 2 the share of the center was only 20%and in phase 3, Karnataka plots and rehabilitation costs.
He rejected Mr. Sury’s claim that the congress governments had built only 6 km of meters, the Minister of Transport said: “In the first phase we planned 42 km. The state spent 24,064.3 Crore compared to 17,803.85 GBP Crore, with 43,498,53 Crore guaranteed by the state.
Delay
Mr. Reddy said: “Isn’t the center any same responsible? Who delayed the arrival of train trainers? Who issues an environmental permit? Is it a central government?
He also accused Karnataka’s BJP of the fact that he did not raise the question of allocation 15. The financial committee of 11,495 Crore for the peripheral circular road and the development of the lake, which he, according to him, was denied to the state. “They will not talk about the share of Karnataka in parliament, but they criticize the state government here,” he said.
On Metro Fare Hikes, Mr. Reddy explained that the decision is based on the committee appointed by the Center, whose report is approved by the Delhi Metro Council, headed by the head of the Ministry of City Development.
Published – 9. August 2025 9:11
