Bengaluru: Centre Ready To Take Charge Of Suburban Rail Project, Says Tejasvi Surya

The centre is willing to take up the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project (BSRP) if the state government proposes it, stated Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya during a media interaction on Wednesday (14 February).

“I have spoken to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and they are ready to take over the project if the State government moots the proposal,” he said. 

The BSRP, conceived as an eco-friendly transportation system akin to the Bengaluru Metro, seeks to address the city’s enduring mobility challenges.

The project, sanctioned through the Ministry of Railways for a cost of Rs 15,767 crore, intends to establish a suburban railway network spanning 148 km, encompassing 58 stations across four corridors: Sampige, Mallige, Parijaata, and Kanaka.

The Sampige corridor stretches from Kempegowda railway station to Devanahalli, covering a distance of 41.4 km and serving 15 stations. The Mallige corridor connects Baiyappanahalli terminal to Chikkabanavara, spanning 25 km with 14 stations.

Parijaata corridor, linking Kengeri to Whitefield, extends over 35.52 km and encompasses nine stations. Lastly, the Kanaka corridor, running from Heelalige to Rajankunte, spans 46.24 km and features 19 stations along its route.

The project is being implemented by a Special Project Vehicle (SPV), the Karnataka Rail Infrastructure Development Company Limited (K-RIDE). The SPV is a joint venture between the state and the centre, each contributing 20 per cent of the project's funds, with the remainder raised from the market.

In June 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation for the suburban rail project in the city, vowing to turn a project that had lingered for 40 years into a reality within 40 months.

However, the state government recently extended the deadline for the project to 2027, thereby deviating from PM Modi's initial deadline of December 2025 for the suburban project.

Despite K-RIDE initiating groundwork, progress has been sluggish, drawing criticism from all quarters.

"The delay in implementing the suburban rail project is owing to issues in the special purpose vehicle formed for the project between the state government and Railways. Nonetheless, given that this is a Railways initiative, the state government should consider relinquishing full control of K-RIDE to the union government to ensure a smooth implementation of the project," remarked Tejasvi Surya.