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As DK Shivakumar takes over as the next Chief Minister of Karnataka on June 3, one of the first decisions he will have to make might come as a contradiction to the stance taken by the Congress party. His new cabinet will have to take a call on whether to go ahead with the bid submitted by Adani Enterprises Limited on the two packages for the tunnel road project because of the nearly Rs 4,600 crore above the government estimate quoted by them. Adani was still the lowest bidder.
The Congress party and Rahul Gandhi in particular have been very vocal in their criticism of Gautam Adani, the billionaire who heads the Adani Group. Over the last several years, Rahul Gandhi has time and again criticised the BJP-led Union government’s proximity to Adani and repeatedly questioned why Gautam Adani has not been made accountable for corruption allegations.
However, that has not stopped the Congress-led state government from considering the Adani Group on the tunnel project—now being portrayed as a flagship project for DK Shivakumar. As the minister in charge of Bengaluru development, Shivakumar has proposed a slew of infrastructure projects. None has been more controversial than the tunnel project, not only because of the geographical challenges involved in digging a tunnel under the notoriously rocky underground, but also because of environmental challenges and Shivakumar’s contention that the road would be tolled and would be for private four-wheelers.
Interestingly, while the cabinet will have to take a call on the bid, the Adani Group in mid-May already conducted survey and soil testing along the proposed route for the tunnel, a process – officials from Bengaluru Smart Infrastructure Ltd (B-SMILE), the special purpose vehicle overseeing the project said – the bidders were free to do to assess the challenges of implementing such a project.
The tunnel road project is an ambitious plan floated by Shivakumar when he became the Deputy Chief Minister, connecting Hebbal and Silk Board. Despite tremendous public opposition to the project, Shivakumar has moved ahead with the tenders, and by December 2025, Adani Enterprises was the lowest bidder.
However, the bid for the two packages floated for the proposed 16.75-km tunnel road project is significantly higher than the government estimate, necessitating cabinet approval. While the government has pegged the total project cost at Rs 17,698 crore, the Adani Group has quoted Rs 22,267 crore for the entire project. This is an increase of around 24% for the first package and 28% for the second.
According to Moneycontrol, B-SMILE sent the file to the state government on May 29, coinciding with Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot's formal acceptance of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's resignation.