The Karnataka cabinet on Monday cleared Rs 193.65 crore in funding support to the greenfield domestic passenger airport project at Hassan, after a delay of nearly six decades since it was first proposed in 1967. Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa had allocated Rs 175 crore during his Budget speech after former Prime Minister and member of Rajya Sabha HD Deve Gowda made an appeal to have a functional airport in Hassan. After a meeting On Monday, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai told the media that the cabinet had cleared the funding for infrastructure such as the runway, passenger terminal, and technical structure. "The project cost of Rs 196.35 crore, will be released in two packages," he said
Hassan is well connected through highway and railways, and is close to a major seaport in Mangaluru. However, it lacked an airport and thus the project was proposed. The project had received a boost when Gowda was Prime Minister in 1996, following which he had laid the foundation stone at Boovanahalli, on the outskirts of Hassan, in 2007 when the JD(S)-BJP coalition was in power. However, it has not seen any progress since.
Alongside sanctioning grants for the airport project in Hassan, the cabinet also decided to amend the law and other regulations pertaining to issuing of transferable development rights (TDR) certificates to landowners who have surrendered their plots for state’s public projects like the Bengaluru Metro or Ring Road. Bommai had said that under the current system, the agency implementing the project forwards the TDR share after acquiring the plot to BDA. Before issuing TDR, BDA officials conduct a survey, which was causing a delay of four to five years and led to harassment of those landowners who surrendered the plot. Therefore, the government decided to have single surveying for the plot, he said, which will be convenient for the people.
The minister added that the cabinet also decided to constitute a sub-committee to draft the Karnataka State Water Policy. Meanwhile, the state has also acceded to the implementation of World Bank assisted Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) phases two and three in respect of 58 dams at an estimated cost of Rs 1,500 crore. The World Bank will give 70% of the funds required in loans, while the state will bear 30% of the expenses.
Bommai also said that the cabinet agreed to take up three lift irrigation projects valued at Rs 1,252 crore which were cleared by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development. "The Rs 415 crore project is related to filling up 94 tanks in Honnali taluk in Davangere district by lifting water from Tungabhadra. Rs 670 crore is for filling up 74 tanks in Kudligi in Bellary district by lifting water from Tungabhadra and Rs 167 crore for augmentation of tanks under Sasvehalli lift irrigation scheme near Honnali taluk in Davangere in two stages," he said.
Bommai also said that the cabinet has also approved The Karnataka Contingency Fund (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 which will enable the state to enhance the contingency fund for COVID-19 and other related expenditures from Rs 500 crore to Rs 2,500 crore. The state also gave administrative approval for the construction of 100 police stations at an estimated price of Rs 200 crore.
Other cabinet decisions include enhancing reservation for children of farmers and agricultural labourers in admission to Diploma in Agriculture, BSc Agriculture and an equivalent degree from existing 40-50% and administrative approval for construction of building for Rani Chennamma University at Hirebagewadi village in Belagavi at an estimated cost of Rs 110 crore.