IN A FIRST, BMRCL STARES AT CASH CRUNCH

Cost escalates by Rs 10,000 crore, state non-committal

- S LALITHA @ Bengaluru

THE much-awaited green signal from the State Cabinet to fund its share of the revised cost of Rs 40,614 crore of Bengaluru Metro Phase-2 project failed to come through earlier this month. This has sent alarm bells ringing at Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL).

The escalation of nearly Rs 10,000 crore for the 75.06-km network needs to be borne equally between Karnataka and the Centre. However, the delay in funding approval for the increased cost has the potential to severely impact Phase-2, which is racing towards the finish line of December 2026, say multiple sources.

Phase-2 consists of four extensions of the Phase-1 network, apart from two new lines, the 19.15-km Yellow Line from RV Road to Bommasandra via Electronics City, and the 21.26-km Pink Line from Kalena Agrahara to Nagavara. The original deadline of 2020 for the project (approved in 2014) has now been pushed to December 2026.