Bengaluru: Prime Minister Modi To Inaugurate The 13.7 Km KR Puram-Whitefield Metro Stretch Today
The stretch includes 12 stations and is intended to significantly reduce travel time. (Twitter/Veronica D'Suoza)The long-awaited extension of the Namma Metro network to connect Whitefield and KR Puram will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today (25 March).
This 13.7 km stretch — as part of the Bengaluru Metro Phase-2 network — aims to expand the metro access to the IT hub located at the eastern parts of the city.
The total proposed length for this corridor spans 15.81 km, connecting Baiyappanahalli to Whitefield.
The remaining 2.1 km stretch on this line to connect KR Puram and Byapannahalli is yet to be completed.
The Prime Minister is scheduled to arrive in Bengaluru to first travel to Chikkaballapura for the inauguration of the Sri Madhusudan Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (SMSIMSR) in the morning.
The SMSIMSR, which will start functioning this year, will provide medical education and quality medical care free of cost.
Following this, the Prime Minister will inaugurate the metro stretch around 1 pm.
Commercial operations on this stretch are expected to serve the city populations from tomorrow (26 March).
Ahead of the inauguration, the Bengaluru Metro officials also decided to change the name of six metro stations on the new corridor, reports The Hindu. This includes:
K R Puram station to Krishnarajapura (K R Pura).
Mahadevapura to Singayyappanapalya.
Hoodi Junction to Hoodi.
Kadugodi to Kadugodi Tree Park.
Channasandra to Hopefarm Channasandra.
Whitefield is renamed Whitefield (Kadugodi).
Earlier this month, a trial run of five metro trains on the corridor was conducted over three days.
The construction of this stretch cost approximately Rs 4,250 crore and is intended to reduce travel time to 24 minutes, which would otherwise take more than an hour by road.
The stretch includes 12 stations and will also include a direct walkway to the International Tech Park (ITPL) from the Agrahara Metro station.
Whitefield is home to several multinational companies, including Infosys, Wipro, and IBM, with numerous tech parks and corporate offices.
With the opening of this eastern extension of the purple line to Whitefield, the Namma Metro is projected to bring an increased ridership from other parts of the city.
This accessibility will additionally have a significant impact in transforming a key commercial pocket of the city.
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