From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, Feb 9: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has indicated that the Reach 6 of Phase 2 of Namma Metro in Bengaluru would be ready in 2025.

He said, “The Phase 2 Reach 6 of the metro work is progressing well and it will be thrown open to the public by next year.”

Shivakumar said the total length of the tunnel in this route is 13.76 km and the stretch between Dairy Circle and Nagavara will have a total of 12 stations.

The total length of the route from Kalena Agrahara to Nagavara is 21.26 kms, he explained.

Briefing the media on the progress, he said, “Nine tunnel drilling machines are functioning currently, of which 7 are nearing completion. About 75% of work is complete on the 12 stations in the route. The construction of this stretch is awarded to Afcons, L&T and ITD.”

He mentioned that the interchange stations at Jayadeva Hospital, MG Road, Cantonment and Nagavara are the major stations in this route.

Namma Metro has maintained international quality all through and it is better than Delhi metro. We have not compromised on the quality at any stage, he said.

The Deputy Chief Minister stated that the State Government has plans of building tunnel roads in Bengaluru.

“I want to get first-hand understanding of tunnel drilling and its challenges,” he said.

Asked about the Airport metro line, he said, “The work is progressing fast. We have instructed them to build two levels wherever pillars are not cast yet. One level will be used for the road and the other for the metro. The BBMP and BMRCL will jointly work on this.’’

The cost of the flyover will be borne by the BBMP while BMRCL will take care of the metro costs. This is likely to help resolve traffic congestion in Bengaluru.

“I had seen such projects in Nagpur, we will implement metro plus road lines in the future metro lines,” he said.

On the metro line on the airport road which was originally planned to be completed by this year, he explained that about 98% of land acquisition is complete. As much as 53% of the construction work is completed and work on the 17 elevated metro stations is in progress.

Shivakumar said the State Government has already asked the authorities to prepare detailed project report (DPR) for Tumakuru, Anekal and Bidadi routes.

“I will share more info once the DPR is ready. We have to take the Centre also into confidence in the metro project,’’ he added.