Bengaluru, Oct 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy on Wednesday alleged that NICE had collected Rs 4,756.48 crore in toll revenue since 2008 despite the project remaining incomplete and demanded that toll collection be stopped immediately.
"Therefore, I demand that toll collection be stopped immediately. The State government should also take urgent action in this regard. I also appeal to the public not to pay tolls under any circumstances," Kumaraswamy said.
NICE (Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise) project is a long-running controversy in Karnataka involving the development and land acquisition for the Bengaluru-Mysuru Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC).
The project was conceived as an expressway and peripheral road network connecting Bengaluru and Mysuru, along with townships and related infrastructure.
The main controversy concerns land acquisition, alleged excess acquisition, compensation and the use of land acquired for purposes allegedly beyond those originally approved.
Addressing a press conference at the JD(S) headquarters, JP Bhavan, Kumaraswamy argued that despite the High Court making strong observations against toll collection, and the Supreme Court not issuing any stay on the matter, the continued collection of toll was illegal.
The original project cost of the NICE road was Rs 1,583.76 crore. However, the company has so far collected Rs 4,756.48 crore in toll revenue.
He alleged that toll collection was being carried out in violation of the terms governing the NICE project.
He referred to the Karnataka High Court's observations on the project and said the Supreme Court had not stayed the High Court judgment.
According to figures cited by him, annual toll collections stood at Rs 5.59 crore in 2008-09 and had risen to Rs 734.97 crore in 2024-25.
He alleged that a total of Rs 4,756.48 crore had been collected between 2008 and 2025.
'How many more years will toll collection continue?'
Kumaraswamy strongly objected to suggestions that toll collection could continue for another decade.
"How many more years will this alleged collection continue? They say there are still another 10 years of toll collection. On what basis? This cannot continue," he said.
He reiterated his demand that toll collection on the NICE road be stopped immediately and that the State government take appropriate action in light of the court proceedings and the terms of the original agreements.
Kumaraswamy said the issue had been pursued by the JD(S) and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda for nearly two decades and claimed that the matter was now reaching a decisive stage.
Kumaraswamy said a Toll Concession Agreement (TCA) was signed on September 4, 2000, between the State Public Works Department and NICE.
He said the agreement required the project to be implemented in accordance with the original Framework Agreement (FWA) dated April 3, 1997.
In the event of any conflict between the TCA and the terms of the FWA, the provisions of the Framework Agreement were to prevail, he said.
According to Kumaraswamy, the agreement also envisaged construction of a four-lane concrete road, service roads and maintenance areas before toll collection could begin.
He alleged that these conditions were not fully complied with and that toll collection nevertheless began in 2008.
"NICE has been collecting toll despite not completing the project and has also acquired land belonging to farmers. The company cannot continue collecting toll without complying with the conditions of the original agreements," he said.
Kumaraswamy also raised allegations concerning lake areas within the project.
Referring to the H.T. Somashekar Reddy case, he said NICE had sought 6,999 acres before the Supreme Court, including 2,193 acres for the Peripheral Road.
He said the land cited at the time comprised various categories of agricultural and government land and did not include lake areas.
He further said engineer Kapil Sharma had, in 2021, used the Dishaank application to identify instances where roads had allegedly been constructed over lake areas and had submitted a complaint.
Kumaraswamy said documents relating to the alleged encroachment of lakes were also released at the press conference.
Kumaraswamy alleged that the project alignment was altered through the Outline Development Plan (ODP) on February 12, 2004, without obtaining the required Cabinet approval.
He alleged that the changes resulted in an expansion of the land allocated to different components of the project.
According to the documents cited by him, the land earmarked for the Peripheral Road was increased from 2,193 acres to 2,747 acres, while the land for the toll road was increased from 6,999 acres to 9,468 acres.
Kumaraswamy alleged that these changes were made unilaterally and without Cabinet approval.
He also referred to the Karnataka High Court's judgment of July 29, which, according to him, held that altering the original agreement through the ODP amounted to a "fraud on statute and the Constitution" and also criticised State authorities for their role in the matter.
Kumaraswamy said NICE had approached the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition challenging the High Court judgment.
He said the Supreme Court had not granted a stay on the High Court judgment and had adjourned the matter for further hearing to November 2.
He added that 25 lawyers, including those representing the State government, had appeared before the court in connection with the matter.
Kumaraswamy argued that, in view of the High Court judgment and the absence of a stay from the Supreme Court, toll collection should be stopped immediately.
He also pointed to a Cabinet decision taken during the S.M. Krishna government on November 4, 2002, under which toll collection was to be withdrawn if the four-lane concrete road was not completed within six years.
Kumaraswamy alleged that NICE had generated revenue through avenues other than toll collection, in violation of the original Framework Agreement.
He cited Rs 384 crore allegedly generated through land sales, Rs 108 crore received as advances towards joint development of land and construction projects, and Rs 338 crore from convention centres.
He also referred to the recommendations of former Minister and Congress MLA T.B. Jayachandra, who chaired a House committee in 2016.
According to Kumaraswamy, the committee had recommended taking over the NICE project and recovering excess land.
Kumaraswamy questioned the change in Jayachandra's position, noting that while he had stated in August 2023 that the NICE road was not required, he subsequently wrote to the Chief Minister in May 2025 seeking completion of the project.
"This raises questions about what is happening behind the scenes," Kumaraswamy alleged.
Source: IANS
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