Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project: ‘Corridors 2 and 4 are priority now,’ says minister V Somanna amid talks on axing Corridor 3 

Government officials privy to the gathering told The Indian Express that talks were connected to shelve Corridor 3 but nary actionable determination has been taken yet.

While Corridor 1 connects KSR Bengaluru to KIA Airport, Corridor 2 connects Benniganahalli to Chikkabanavara and Corridor 4 volition tally from Heelalige to Rajanakunte.

“Our precedence close present is to acceptable the shot rolling for corridors 2 and 4 wherever immoderate advancement has been made. Yes, the curate (M B Patil) and I had discussions connected the workability of Corridor 3 a fewer weeks ago… erstwhile you already person Bengaluru Metro on the aforesaid lines. Corridors 2 and 4 volition beryllium our priority, portion corridors 1 and 3 volition beryllium enactment connected the backmost burner for now,” Somanna told The Indian Express.

“The Indian Railways is doing capable successful presumption of quadrupling, circular railway network, and different railway infrastructure enactment to link Bengaluru to the suburbs. Implementing corridors 1 and 3 has its ain acceptable of challenges and I personally judge K-RIDE does not person the required infrastructure to implicit it. It involves a batch of technical, infrastructural and administrative enactment to propulsion corridors 1 and 3, which K-RIDE does not presently have,” helium added. K-RIDE is simply a associated task of the Karnataka authorities and the Ministry of Railways that is implementing BSRP.

Somanna besides said helium was satisfied with the advancement made nether N Manjula, K-RIDE Managing Director. Manjula besides serves arsenic the caput to the Karnataka government, infrastructure development, and arsenic caput of the Kannada and civilization department.

“I americium blessed with the advancement made nether the contiguous managing manager of K-RIDE. However, without a full-time administrator, we cannot velocity up the suburban railway project. Additionally, we request a idiosyncratic who is besides technically sound. I person urged the Karnataka authorities aggregate times to name a technically qualified idiosyncratic to pb K-RIDE. After the (Winter) Session, I volition erstwhile again impulse the authorities to name a full-time and technically dependable managing manager for K-RIDE,” said Somanna.

Citizens’ forum questions reasoning

Rail enthusiasts and national forums are unhappy with the discussions connected shelving Corridor 3 and person called the determination a “disservice to Bengaluru”.

Rajkumar Dugar, a convenor for the Citizens for Citizens forum, argued that specified a treatment was flawed and against the tenets of multi-modal transportation. Corridor 3 integrates with C1 (at Majestic) and C2 (at Benniganahalli) portion besides integrating with the SWR web astatine each intermediate railway stations, peculiarly KSR City/Majestic, Cantonment and Baiyyappanahalli, helium added.

“The basal thought of C3 becoming redundant owed to the availability of Metro betwixt the aforesaid endpoints is flawed since some roadworthy and (South Western Railway) obstruction options were already disposable betwixt the aforesaid endpoints earlier the Metro was implemented. By that approach, the Metro was not needed to the airdrome oregon anyplace due to the fact that roads oregon buses oregon cheaper obstruction options were already disposable and lone needed to beryllium leveraged oregon improved astatine overmuch little concern and effort,” helium said.

“Also, erstwhile an elevated roadworthy oregon passageway roadworthy is planned, it is already known that the at-grade roadworthy is already disposable and possibly adjacent Metro is disposable oregon volition go disposable on the aforesaid alignment. That does not deter the readying of elevated roads and passageway roads. So, wherefore should BSRP C3 beryllium scrapped connected this ground?” Duggar asked.

He further stated that Metro stations person been designed to grip lone six-coach trains whereas BSRP stations are being built for nine-coach trains, resulting successful 50 per cent higher carrying capableness than Metro.

The BSRP task and its progress

The BSRP was sanctioned connected October 21, 2020, with 4 corridors spanning 148 km, aimed for afloat commissioning by October 2026, with the Airport Corridor (C1) targeted for completion by October 2023. However, 4 years on, advancement has been slow.

While Corridor C1A (KSR-Yelahanka) is inactive successful the tendering phase, Corridor C1B (Yelahanka-Airport-Devanahalli) remains successful the readying stage, with nary on-ground enactment initiated. Corridor C2 (Beniganahalli-Chikkabanavara) was awarded to L&T connected August 26, 2022, and has achieved lone 28 per cent progress. Similarly, Corridor C4 (Heelalige-Rajankunte), awarded to L&T connected December 30, 2023, has completed conscionable 4 per cent of the work.

Meanwhile, Corridor C3 (Kengeri-Whitefield) is besides stuck successful the readying stage, with nary carnal enactment started. Though 66 per cent of the task timeline has lapsed, lone astir 8 per cent of the wide enactment has been completed.