KOCHI: While work on Kochi Metro’s phase two corridor has progressed considerably over the past weeks, KMRL’s plans of getting the line operational by December now seem improbable.
“Though several core structural works have crossed key milestones over the past weeks, it would be difficult to get the Pink Line ready by the end of the year. We are now hoping to finish all civil and electrical work by that time,” a KMRL official told TNIE.
The setback comes on the back of some unforeseen land-acquisition hiccups and inherent delay in pushing paperwork through the city’s administrative bodies.
“There were delays in acquiring land for the Chembumukku and Padamugal stations. Even when the issues were resolved, the official notifications were caught up in procedural delays and took their own time to reach us. Only on acquiring them could we begin work,” the official said.
“All those delays are behind us now and work has indeed picked up pace,” he added.
However, not enough to meet the earlier deadline of operationalising the first five stations by June.
“That’s difficult to meet now. We are now pushing it back, along with the December plans,” the official highlighted.
That said, it would still be a while before the metro corridor is fully opened as operational and safety testing would each require a month or two. This means that we are looking at the summer of 2027 for the Pink Line to be up and running, the official added.
Pink Line 60% complete, says official
Overall, the Pink Line is now 60% complete. “Over 85% of the piling work is in place, and the remainder of the construction is at the 55% mark. Meanwhile, the erection phase of the project is also progressing well,” the official said.
Indeed, according to the latest figures, 1,733 of the 2,028 piles required have been readied. Of the 470 piers required on the corridor, 279 have been built. With this, pier work, too, is well over the 75% mark. The most visible phase of metro construction is the placing of the viaduct girders. Of the 488 U-girders, 172 have been launched onto piers.