IMM candidate Murat Kurum had gone silent: The Ministry has included it in its plan!

Despite the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality mayoral candidate of the People's Alliance, Murat Kurum, stating that "what is not on the agenda of the people of Istanbul will not be on our agenda," Kanal Istanbul has been included in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure's 2024-2028 Strategic Plan.

According to the report by Sarp Sağkal from Cumhuriyet newspaper, the Ministry aims to complete 45 percent of the project by 2028.

The project was included under the goal of "creating a waterway to reduce the density in our country's maritime transport and to ensure that maritime traffic becomes safer, faster, and more economical."

EIA POSITIVE DECISION CITED AS A RISK

The plan, which states that 20 percent of the project has been completed so far, notes that the goal is to complete 30 percent of the canal in 2027 and 45 percent in 2028.

Under the "risk" heading for the goal, it is noteworthy that the following assessments were included: "The insufficiency of private sector entrepreneurship due to the very high investment cost, the failure of the investment to materialize due to delays in the process caused by the cancellation of the EIA positive decision and the annulment lawsuits filed against the Environmental Plan and Zoning Plans, and the failure of the investment to materialize due to delays resulting from objections made during the tender process."

NEW COST IS 356 BILLION 176 MILLION

The construction budget for the canal, which was estimated at 75 billion TL in the Ministry's 2019-2023 strategic plan, is shown as 356 billion 176 million 423 thousand 533 TL in the new plan. The project's strategies were described with the phrases: "Maximum care will be taken to protect nature and the environment. The project process will be carried out in strong cooperation with stakeholder institutions/organizations. The historical and cultural texture of the Bosphorus will be protected."

The plan also included the assessment that "Ship traffic in the Bosphorus is increasing. Historical textures and living organisms around the Bosphorus are under threat due to traffic."

News Source: 12punto