Bengaluru Suburban Railway: KRIDE Secures Land Lease And Funding For Kanaka Line

The Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project (BSRP) achieved a significant milestone on Tuesday (2 April) as the South Western Railway (SWR) leased 114.472 acres of land for Corridor-4.

This development marks a crucial step forward for the project, aimed at enhancing connectivity and easing commuter congestion in Bengaluru.

The Railways transferred the land to the Rail Infrastructure Development Company-Karnataka Limited (K-RIDE) for the execution of Corridor-4, known as the 'Kanaka Line.'

The 46.24km long corridor will connect Heelalige on the southern side of the city to Rajanakunte via Baiyappanahalli, Channasandra and Yelahanka.

Additionally, a lease agreement was signed for revised Railway land, reducing the area from 157.07 acres to 85.707 acres for Corridor-2 (Mallige Line). This strategic transfer of land is expected to accelerate the pace of the project, which has faced delays in the past, reports Deccan Herald.

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

The existing BSRP project plan comprises four corridors with a total length of 148.17 km.

These corridors include KSR Bengaluru City to Devanahalli (Corridor 1 - 41.4 km), Baiyappanahalli to Chikkabanavara (Corridor 2 - 25.01 km), Kengeri to Whitefield (Corridor 3 - 25.01 km), and Heelalige to Rajanukunte (Corridor 4 - 46.25 km).

The project's progress received a further boost on 9 February when the Karnataka government and the KfW Development Bank of Germany entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for funding the BSRP. Under the agreement, the bank will provide Rs 4,561 crore at an annual interest rate of 4 per cent for 20 years.

This funding will primarily be allocated for critical infrastructure components, including Corridor-3 station and viaduct, Corridor-4 station work, Depot-1 solar panel, and security equipment.

The BSRP 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 ambitious project, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2022, received renewed commitment from Karnataka Infrastructure Development Minister M B Patil, who has set a new deadline of December 2027 for its completion.

19 Stations in Kanaka Line

Kanaka Line will comprise 19 stations at Rajanukunte, Muddanahalli, Yelahanka (interchange), Jakkur, RK Hegde Nagar, Thanisandra, Hennur, Horamavu, Channasandra, Benniganahalli (interchange), Kaggadasapura, Doddanekkundi, Marathahalli, Belandur Road, Carmelaram, Ambedkar Nagar, Huskur, Singena Agrahara, Bommasandra and Heelalige.

While Marathahalli and Yelahanka stations will be elevated, the remaining stations will be at-grade.

Namma Metro and Kanaka Line in the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project (BSRP) corridor will share a common alignment for a distance of 650m between Benniganahalli and Channasandra.