If you’ve ever watched your entire youth flash by in a Silk Board–Hebbal traffic jam, welcome to the club. Every Bengalurean has at least once dreamed of a magical tunnel that would teleport us past honking, fumes, and existential dread. Enter the Hebbal–Silk Board tunnel project, a.k.a. THAT underground jugaad the city’s been buzzing about. But hold up, the expert panel just side-eyed the Detailed Project Report (DPR) and basically said: ‘Maths, maps, and logic? Absent hai, boss.’
Image courtesy Deccan Herald
1. Construction Without Clarity: Welcome to Bengaluru’s ‘Blind Date’ with Big Projects
If you think infrastructure chaos is a city tradition, you’re not wrong. The tunnel DPR got a hard reality check from a five-member expert squad (led by a BMRCL pro) for flunking basics: not enough boreholes for soil study, poor groundwater logic, and ramp designs that might boomerang jams from one place to another. And guess what, their shaft proposal near Lalbagh? The panel was like, ‘Bhai, environmental kaun dekhega?’ For a city tired of seeing new projects announced before old potholes are filled, this feels a bit… premature.
Image courtesy The Hindu
2. Show Me The Money (And The Toll, Aur Kitna Dena Hoga?)
Every Bengalurean’s nightmare: paying a premium to skip traffic, only to meet the exact same gridlock at the ramp. That’s some next-level paisa vasool plot twist! The tunnel’s BOOT model means you’ll cough up Rs 330 for a one-way Silk Board–Hebbal sprint (with yearly hikes, of course). Cost estimates? Ranging from Rs 8,000 crore to, hold your chai, Rs 17,000+ crore, depending on scope-creep, panel says it could go up further if they don’t fix the basic homework. Bhai, for that kind of money, at least give us clear roads, na?
3. Metro, Tunnel, Ya Both? Pick Your Fighter!
Fun fact: the tunnel’s proposed route matches up suspiciously close to both current and future Metro lines (Phase 2A and 2B) AND overlaps with suburban rail. Analysts say the traffic predictions for the tunnel might be way off because they didn’t fully consider that people might simply switch to Metro or upgraded BMTC buses once they land. Translation? All modes might just end up cannibalizing each other’s ridership numbers. Classic Bengaluru, so many choices, still stuck in traffic.
Image courtesy BBC News
4. Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V, Ctrl+FOMO: The DPR Gets Roasted
The committee demanded a full reality check: redo the soil surveys, properly assess the environment, model traffic with real data, and most importantly, give a transparent cost breakdown (no hiding the bill, please).
Bengaluru Deserves Better—Speed, Not Shortcuts
If the expert panel’s saying ‘wait, let’s fix the basics’—maybe it’s time to breathe, do the homework properly, and THEN plunge underground. What are your thoughts?
