International Airport  

The international airport at Bangalore is set to take off as a joint venture project. The Tata-Raytheon combine, the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Karnataka Government have agreed to make the Bangalore Airport project a joint venture between the state and the Tatas. The project is to be modelled on a build-own-operate (BOO) format.  
 

Multi-storeyed parking lot  
  To counter the lack of parking space, a multi-storeyed parking lot is under construction on J.C. Road. This project, consisting of a basement and four floors is a joint venture between the BCC and a private builder. 

Bangalore—key healthcare centre for South Asia  
  

Bangalore is fast emerging as a key advanced healthcare centre for the whole of the South Asian region.  

The Wockhardt and the Manipal Heart Foundation, two new high-technology hospitals, now receive a number of patients from countries like Mauritius, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The cost structure in Bangalore provides more value for money, making it a more preferred destination for health care in this region says Vishal Bali, Centre Manager at Wockhardt.  

In order to ensure speedy relief for accident victims in Bangalore, a new accident care facility is being planned by the JAIRAM (Joint Action for Information, Relief and Accident Management) Trust. Bangalore will be divided into zones serviced by special ambulances and linked to hospitals to take care of accident cases.  
Four big hospitals will form the hub of the network with another 15 smaller ones providing the back-up, all these serviced by about 15 ambulances.  
 

The Bangalore City Corporation is now moving into the second phase of its ‘Nirmala Bengalooru’ or Clean Bangalore campaign.  

According to Dr A. Ravindra, the administrator of the corporation, the second phase involves improvement of infrastructure including roads, footpaths, and improving garbage collection and disposal equipments, apart from motivating the available manpower. 

7 fly-overs for Bangalore  

In a bid to ease the traffic congestion in Bangalore, the Karnataka Government has decided to build seven fly-overs in different parts of the city, at an estimated cost of Rs 384.93 crore.  
The city’s first and biggest fly-over stretching for about 2.5 km connecting the Town Hall to Sirsi Circle, is already underway.  

Designed by DAR Consultants, a British firm, the fly-over will have four lanes with another four lanes running below. The project has been undertaken by L&T on a turnkey basis and is expected to be ready by the middle of 1999. 

50 police patrol vans for city  
  Bangalore now has 50 patrol vans, completely equipped with search light, wireless set, cane shields, lathis, first-aid box, a stretcher and an armed policeman each, keeping up a round-the-clock vigil, in different parts of the city.  

We gather from police sources that 50 more such vans will be introduced in the city in due course. 

M.R. Jaishankar, President of KOAPA, announced that KOAPA through its members would contribute Rs one crore towards the beautification of Bangalore, in association with Swabhimana. This announcement was made recently in the presence of the BCC Commissioner, Dr A.Ravindra; the BDA Commissioner, Laxmi Venkatachalam; and Swabhimana, during a luncheon meeting held at Hotel Atria. 

Ponds in Cubbon Park desilted  

The pond, ‘Masi Karagada Kunte’, in Cubbon Park, is being desilted to allow more rainwater to gather in it. Desilting will facilitate ground water recharging in the park and areas around it said M. Marisiddiah, the Deputy Director of the Horticulture department.  

Bird-attracting tree varieties will be planted around the pond, and the area preserved as a bird sanctuary he said.  

The Lotus Pond, again in Cubbon Park, has also been cleaned and will soon have water lilies and lotuses floating in it, said Marisiddiah.