K'taka Cong use of Metro to transport workers appreciated

Bengaluru, Aug 17

The decision of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president D K Shivakumar to switch the mode of transport of thousands of party workers to Namma Metro has been much appreciated both by maiden travellers as well as Bengalureans.

The Congress had sponsored 80,000 Metro tickets on August 15 to enable party workers to reach the venue of the National College Grounds in Basavanagudi to take part in the rally to mark the 75th year of Independence on Monday.

Thousands of party workers who came from across the state made their debut trip in the Metro trains and appreciated the party leadership for giving them an opportunity to experience the journey in the Metro trains.

The buses from across the state were parked in the nearest places to Metro stations which are located in the outskirts of the city in all directions. If the buses and other vehicles were to enter the city, Bengalureans would have experienced nightmares on the roads.

Software professionals, techies, who were returning from holidays to Bengaluru on the same day to attend work from the next day would have also been stuck in the traffic for hours, but escaped the trauma as lakhs of Congress workers returned to the outskirts of the city through Metro rail.

Suryamukundraj, general secretary of the state Congress, said that the entire plan was made by Shivakumar and his brother Member of Parliament D K Suresh. "Shivakumar stood at the entrance of Majestic Metro Railway Station to guide the party workers. Knowing well that if Congress workers come to the venue in their vehicles, the city's traffic will be choked, the Metro ride was planned."

Meanwhile, Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) created a record on August 15 as it registered the most number of footfalls since its inception.

According to the statistics released by BMRCL as many as 8,25,190 lakh people travelled in the Metro on August 15 which is the highest since its inception in 2011. The previous record was 6.19 lakh footfalls registered on October 25, 2019.