About

As the Bangalore Metro chugs along, the number of questions about the real costs of the project, its expected efficiency and its need itself, keep increasing. This site is an attempt to capture facts, opinions and questions about the Bangalore Metro which might not necessarily get covered in mainstream media .

A comprehensive plan of the Bangalore Metro or the details of the stations, sub-stations, work stations and any other stations that it needs were never available in the public domain. With the real impact of the Metro (social, environmental and economical) thus hidden from the public always, the project took to a start and the questioning and opposition has only stayed in some pockets. Any number of RTIs and petitions and public protests and PILs, however, have not changed this basis tenet of the Metro Project – lack of transparency and absence of information in the public domain.

The real impact of the metro and the trail of destruction it is leaving has thus been like a drama unfolding in front of our eyes.You know it only when it is actually happening. The more we see, the more it scares us, the more it worries us! What will be left with, when the Metro is complete? What will we be left with when the governments and the politicians and innumerable authorities (BDA, BMRCL, BBMP, BMLTA – did we miss anyone?) are all done with ‘planning’ and ‘developing’ Bangalore? We seem to be restructuring the city to fit with the infrastructure rather than designing infrastructure that fits with the city.

What about the environmental, social and economical impacts of the Metro project (See the attached pamphlet for more details)? Is it justified when half of Karnataka is reeling under the after-effects of floods? Is it justified that we spend tens of thousands of crores on a Metro Rail for a single city, especially when there may be better and cheaper solutions? We lost the Nanda Road Boulevard, part of Lalbagh sold to Metro, Lakshman Rao parks are under threat, the bamboo weavers of K R Road displaced, the traders of CMH road losing their livelihoods. .. The list is endless. Couldn’t we have done better than this?

Have you been wondering about these questions too? Here is your opportunity to join your might in a struggle to demand answers, information and put the brakes on ‘Metro in its current form’ as a solution for Bangalore’s traffic needs. The authorities must stop, re-evaluate, consult, study alternatives, before coming up with a unified solution for Bangalore’s traffic instead of today’s multiple disconnected mega-projects.

We, a group of concerned individuals and organizations, are launching a campaign on Saturday, 31st Oct, 4PM, in front of the BMRCL Office, on Double Road (near Shantinagara Bus terminus). Please join us to share your concerns, discuss, learn, ask and demand a livable and humane city in place of what we have today! The powers-that- be did not choose to consult the public, lets consult among ourselves and tell them what we want! Spread the word and join us on 31st in person.