Villagers upset as NH bypass project from Kushalnagar to Srirangapatna lacks service road

Mysuru: The National Highways Authority of India's (NHAI) project to build a road between Kushalnagar in Kodagu district and Srirangapatna in Mandya, which commenced partially and achieved an average progress of 7% in six months, has deeply disappointed villagers and farmers in Mysuru and Mandya as the stretch lacks a service road.The project work has been divided into five packages, and the first package between Madikeri and Kushalnagar is still awaiting approval from the Union govt. Meanwhile, the work from Kushalnagar to Srirangapatna bypass, which has been divided into four packages, has been taken up at a cost of Rs 2,502 crore.The total stretch of the new alignment on the National Highway 275 from Kushalnagar to Srirangapatna is 92.3 km. The first package of 22.7 km from Kushalnagar is yet to start due to pending clearance from the forest department. Meanwhile, three other package works have commenced and are under way.Though the project has been welcomed by travellers, including those from neighbouring Kerala, farmers and villagers on the proposed alignment are upset as a service road isn't included in the stretch. The locals say the NH bypass project won't help in any development of the region.Bypass will inconvenience farmers: MLAChamundeshwari assembly constituency MLA GT Devegowda told TOI that the project will create trouble for many farmers who have land on the other side of the proposed stretch in the region, especially in his constituency. "In the absence of the service road, farmers and villagers would be forced to travel a long distance to reach their fields and return. More than helping the farmers, it is likely to inconvenience them," the MLA informed.Devegowda said Union minister HD Kumaraswamy, who represents Mandya in Parliament, has met Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari and requested a service road for at least 12km so that farmers benefit from the project. However, on record, the NH bypass project doesn't include a service road.The project from Kushalnagar commences from Guddehosur and culminates near Paschima Vahini in Srirangapatna in Mandya district, passing through Bylakuppe Tibetan settlement, Kampalapura, and Chilkunda in Periyapatna taluk, Bilikere in Hunsur taluk, and Yelawala and Gungralchatra in Mysuru taluk, according to an official from NHAI.The officer confirmed that the access-controlled National Highway 275 bypass road doesn't have a service road. The stretch is expected to cut travel time between destinations, and the speed limit is expected to be fixed at 100 kmph. In response to a query, an NHAI official said a proposal to build a road from Madikeri to Kushalnagar is still pending, while package 1 work is yet to get environmental clearance.