Bengaluru CM seeks defense land for urban development projects

Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar has met with Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi to request the transfer of defense department land and necessary permissions for several development and infrastructure projects in Bengaluru.

Key proposals include the development of approximately 730 acres of vacant defense land near the Ibellur firing range into a permanent public park and green zone. The state government has clarified it is not seeking ownership of the land, only permission for public park use, and will not allow commercial activities. Additionally, the CM requested permission for urgent repairs and development in 10 notified slum areas spanning roughly 43.8 acres to prevent flooding during monsoon seasons.

Other requests involve relaxing building restrictions near HAL airport and Yelahanka airbase, specifically proposing to reduce the mandatory No Objection Certificate (NOC) radius from 20 km to 15 km to balance aviation safety with urban growth. The CM also sought defense land for the expansion of the Agara-Sarjapur road, requesting 13.709 acres to alleviate traffic congestion on the city's ring roads.