The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : BMRCL to erect sound barriers in front of civil courts complex

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Sunday, Dec 20, 2009
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

BMRCL to erect sound barriers in front of civil courts complex

Anil Kumar Sastry and B.S. Ramesh

Sound of vehicles may affect the functioning of the courts, says judge

BANGALORE: Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd., (BMRCL) has promised to erect sound barriers up to the second floor of the City Civil Courts complex during the construction of the Central College underground metro station. Traffic on the Old Post Office Road will have to be diverted in front of the court complex during the construction. The sound of vehicles passing right in front of the complex may affect the functioning of the courts, said H.S. Kempanna, Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge, during a presentation by BMRCL recently.

BMRCL Managing Director N. Sivasailam assured Mr. Kempanna that sound barriers would be placed, if necessary, after conducting noise-level studies. Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic and Safety) Praveen Sood said heavy vehicles, including BMTC buses, would not be allowed on Old Post Office Road during the construction. High Court judges, who constituted the Building Committee of the Court, also directed that only heavy vehicles of BMRCL could be allowed on this road after court hours.

Mr. Sivasailam promised minimal inconvenience to the public, courts and the State secretariat. The construction involved removal and transportation of huge quantity of earth, which could generate dust. Reacting to a clarification sought by Justice Manjula Chellur, Mr. Sivasailam said the mud would be removed at night after sprinkling water in the area to avoid generation of dust. He said that there would be no slush at the entrances of the court and that they would be kept clean. Pavements would be in front of the court, he said.

To a query by Justice Ram Mohan Reddy on transplanting of trees, Mr. Sivasailam said each transplant costs Rs. 1.5 lakh and the survival rate was low. Instead, BMRCL would plant a large number of fast-growing saplings, he said.

Besides requiring the lawns in front of the Vidhana Soudha and the High Court for construction of alternative roads, BMRCL also requires permission to allow regular traffic inside Cubbon Park to enable underground station work at Minsk Square, he said. Therefore, permission to allow regular traffic from Minsk Square to Vidhana Soudha via Cubbon Park in front of Old KGID Building and from Vittal Mallya Junction to K.R. Circle via Bal Bhavan, was required, he said. Mr. Sivasailam assured the committee that once construction of the Vidhana Soudha underground station was over, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Veedhi would be restored to its original glory. The alternative roads and traffic diversion would be in place for 24 months after construction work began, Mr. Sivasailam added. The committee then directed BMRCL and the Government to make a formal application before the High Court seeking a judicial order to utilise land inside Cubbon Park.

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