After a major contractual fallout with L&T, K-RIDE has decided to re-tender key corridors of the 149-km Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project, aiming to revive the long-delayed urban transport dream.
The much-delayed Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project (BSRP) is finally showing signs of revival. After months of uncertainty, K-RIDE (Rail Infrastructure Development Company, Karnataka) has decided to invite fresh tenders for two stalled corridors, ,Corridor 2 (Benniganahalli-Chikkabanavara, 25.01 km) and Corridor 4 (Heelalige-Rajanukunte, 46.88 km).
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The decision was taken at a board meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, based on the advice of the Advocate General, after L&T terminated its contracts in July and initiated arbitration proceedings, demanding ₹505 crore in claims. The move comes at a crucial time, as October marks the original deadline for the project’s completion, 40 months after its launch by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2020.
Despite being touted as an ambitious link complementing Namma Metro, the 149-km, four-corridor suburban rail system has been plagued by delays, coordination issues between the state government and railways, and worksite availability problems. So far, only 18.5% of physical progress has been achieved.
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Fresh tenders for Corridor 2 will be floated in three packages, Chikkabanavara-Yeshwantpur, Yeshwantpur-Hebbal, and Hebbal-Benniganahalli, within days, with work orders likely by December. Corridor 4 tenders will follow in November, and contracts could be awarded early next year.
Each package will have a deadline of 18 to 24 months, and officials hope that the re-tendering will inject new momentum into the long-stalled project. Meanwhile, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs is yet to approve the railways’ 50% equity share for rolling stock procurement.