The city will get its first insured road, if everything goes well for an educational institute that has developed it When Shivakumaraswamy, pontiff, Siddaganga Matt, inaugurated Acharya Dr Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan Road that connects hamlets near Soladevanahalli to Hesaraghatta Main Road off Tumkur Road, on Monday, the city ushered in a new era of insuring public roads. "Developing a road is one thing; but it is the maintenance that calls for a recurring investment. So we are contemplating insuring the road," said Premanatha Reddy, chairman, Acharya Institute of Graduate Studies, which has built the road. "Some insurance companies have come forward, and we will finalise the formalities shortly." <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/sep/road12.jpg" border="5" /> Six villages including Veerasagara, Sasiveghatta, Thammenahalli, Kudureghatta, and Veerashettyhalli have benefited from the road He said the idea of insuring the road was inspired by the Thimmasagar Temple Main Road in Hubli, which was developed by residents of Vidyanagar area before they insured it. "The Thimmasagar Temple Main Road is the first road in the state to have an insurance cover, and ours will be the first road in Bangalore," said Reddy. When Reddy started the institute in 1991 near Soladevanahalli, it had a sprawling campus of 130 acres, but was isolated without an approach road. Then the institute roped in the villagers, and built a 3.5 km road after acquiring land, at the cost of Rs 6 crore. "It took almost 10 years to build it because there was no government involvement in it and the purchase of the land and road development had to be done privately," said Kempe Gowda, a resident of Soladevanahalli, who actively participated in the mission on behalf of the villagers. "As a result, our villages have a road connecting them to the city, and we use Volvo buses run by the BMTC for commuting." Six villages including Veerasagara, Sasiveghatta, Thammenahalli, Kudureghatta, and Veerashettyhalli have benefited from the road and people, who were dependent on bullock carts, are now happy with the high-tech bus frequenting the hamlets. While the bitumen road with neem trees to its either sides has brought a new turn to the lives of the villagers, it may kick-start real estate development across the stretch, which could pose a challenge for maintaining the road, say institute authorities. Nandini, a dean in the institute, said, "It calls for an endless investment for repairing and maintaining the road, and that is why we thought of insuring it." Although they have not finalised the sum, it is expected to have a cover of Rs 6 crore ufffdsame as the investment. The villagers would share the burden of paying premium with the institute, following the Vidyanagar model.

Rocking your pants off

The city will get its first insured road, if everything goes well for an educational institute that has developed it

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