BENGALURU: The much-delayed northern extension of Metro’s Green line which runs 3.3 km from Nagasandra to Madavara is likely to be thrown open for public operations only by July. This short stretch encountered more issues than any other lines.
The Rs 298-crore Metro line has three elevated stations beyond Nagasandra - Manjunath Nagar, Chikkabidarakallu (previously Jindal Nagar) and Madavara (BIEC). The CM had recently specified the deadline as April but work commenced on June 9, 2017, and was to become operational by August 2019. However, the same was delayed for long.
A senior official of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) told TNIE, “Issues have been settled, with only the finishing works in the process. Track laying work will take 2.5 months to complete and the line will be fully operational by July this year. Trial runs of trains and inspection by the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety will also take place.”
Elaborating on the issues faced, the official said the residents of Anchepalya village had been demanding a Metro station between Chikkabirarakallu and Madavara. “Protests by villagers and hindrance to the contractor to carry on work after 80% of the line was completed, stalled the work for months. After a compromise, BMRCL built roads inside the village and constructed connecting roads to the Metro stations.”
This was followed by the cancellation of the contract for the line with Simplex Infrastructure. The contractor was already carrying out works for the Kalena Agrahara and Tavarakere (Swagath Road) stretch which was terminated in January 2021 due to massive delays in execution of the work. “Following this, affected vendors refused to supply raw materials to Simplex for the extension and hence we had to hand over the contract to IL & FS midway which caused a delay of a few months,” he explained.
Another official stated that the pandemic had also delayed work for some time. The issue with the viaduct passing over NICE Road became another controversy. “BMRCL finally paid the Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises Rs 67.65 lakh in August 2023 for the losses incurred by the toll gate when the viaduct was built over the road,” he said.