A suburban railway for Bengaluru city was cleared at the Extended Railway Board on Monday.

Efforts of Tejasvi Surya, Member of Parliament, Bengaluru South had followed up on the project with the NITI Aayog, Railway Minister and top bureaucratic circles.

“The project approval is a huge “milestone” in addressing the urban mobility crisis of Bengaluru. The file now will be next placed before the Cabinet for final approval,” said Tejasvi Surya, in a statement.

“We achieved a huge milestone on Monday in addressing the urban mobility crisis of Bengaluru. Our city is the only metro which does not have a suburban railway network. The suburban railway, something that Bengalureans have been asking for the last 33 years, finally gained the clearance of the Extended Railway Board on Monday,” Surya added.

The project ran into hurdles, mainly with the NITI Aayog, with its proposal earlier this year. “In lieu of this, I met the NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant last week and stressed the importance of a suburban railway for Bengaluru. I informed him that the Revised DPR has met the guidelines laid down by the NITI Aayog and requested him to approve the project soon. It was earlier cleared by the Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa.

“I also met with the Railway Minister last week. As a citizen aggrieved with the traffic of Bengaluru, I brought to his notice the importance of the suburban railway and requested for his early clearance. The efforts of the Railway Minister Piyush Goyal; and Minister of State for Railway Suresh Angadi; and all Members of Parliament from Bengaluru, PC Mohan and Union Minister DV Sadananda Gowda, have borne fruit today,” said Surya.

Surya further said “It’s good to note that all the authorities sat together today and cleared the project, without any further hurdles. It will next come up for approval with the Union Cabinet. All of us Members will meet the Prime Minister and request him to clear the project soon.”

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