BENGALURU: Infrastructure Development Minister MB Patil said on Friday that the state government has set December 2027 as the new deadline for completion of work on all four corridors of the Bangalore Suburban Rail Project (BSRP). The original deadline of 2026 was extended to 2028 during a meeting to review the progress of work on one of the corridors in August last. However, the Railways has been stating that the deadline for the project is 2026.
Rs 4,561-cr loan
Patil announced the new deadline at a function in Vidhana Soudha to sign a memorandum of understanding for a Rs 4,561-crore loan (Euro 500 million) for the project from Luxembourg-based KFW Development Bank. The MoU was signed between the bank and the Rail Infrastructure Development Company (Karnataka) Ltd (K-RIDE), the nodal agency for implementation of the Rs 15,767-crore project. N Manjula, managing director of K-RIDE, and Wolf Muth, country director, KFW, exchanged the MoU documents. This is a supplementary agreement.
The primary agreement was signed between the Department of Economic Affairs and KFW in New Delhi on December 15, 2023. “As per the agreement, KFW will provide the Rs 4,561-crore loan at 4% interest for 20 years,” according to a press release. Patil said the Rs 4,561-crore loan is aimed at addressing critical infrastructure needs of the project.
K-RIDE is a joint venture between the state government and the Ministry of Railways. The 148.17-km suburban rail project with 58 stations will have four corridors: Corridor 1 from KSR Bengaluru city to Devanahalli (41.4 km); Corridor 2 from Baiyappanahalli terminal to Chikkabanavara (25.01 km); Corridor 3 from Kengeri to Whitefield (35.52 km) and Corridor 4 from Heelalige to Rajankunte (46.24 km).