The 2.05-km Kengeri-Challaghatta line is located in the western extreme of the Purple Line. DH PHOTO/PUSHKAR V
The Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (CMRS) has cleared the Kengeri-Challaghatta line in western Bengaluru for commercial operations.
Anjum Parwez, Managing Director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), confirmed to DH that the CMRS clearance had been received for the stretch.
The 2.05-km stretch is located in the western extreme of the Purple Line.
AM Chowdhury, CMRS (Southern Circle), carried out the statutory safety inspection of the Kengeri-Challaghatta line on September 29. The CMRS approval is an absolute requirement for starting commercial operations on a metro line.
On September 25, the CMRS cleared the 2.1-km Baiyappanahalli-KR Pura metro stretch for commercial operations. This section has a new station at Benniganahalli (Tin Factory).
Both stretches (Baiyappanahalli-KR Pura and Kengeri-Challaghatta) are slated to open together in the next few days.
Asked about when the two stretches would open, the BMRCL boss stated that no date had yet been finalised.
The CMRS clearance of a metro line is always conditional. Starting commercial operations depends on how quickly the BMRCL complies with the conditions, and the schedule of political leaders.
Another senior BMRCL official said that all conditions stipulated by the CMRS were “minor in nature” and had been complied with.
“We are ready to open both lines to the public and have communicated it to the CMO,” the official said. “The government has to decide the opening date.”
The 2.1-km Baiyappanahalli-KR Pura metro stretch is of critical importance as it would help connect the tech hub of Whitefield and the surrounding areas with the CBD and beyond.
The 13.71-km KR Pura-Whitefield metro line is operational but, cut off from the rest of the metro network.
Once both Baiyappanahalli-KR Pura and Kengeri-Challaghatta sections open, the Purple Line would expand to nearly 43 km and the Bengaluru metro network would span 73 km, the second largest in the country.
The BMRCL expects the average daily ridership to cross 7 lakh when the entire Purple Line opens. The current average daily ridership is 6.3 lakh.