Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project Gains Traction: Land Acquired, Construction to Begin On Key Corridor

Bengaluru's Suburban Railway Project has received a boost as the South Western Railway (SWR) has allocated 115 acres of land for the construction of a 46.88-km line connecting Heelalige in the south to Rajanukunte in the north.

The SWR has handed over this land to the Railway Infrastructure Development Company Limited (K-RIDE) under a long-term lease agreement. However, the land allocated for Corridor 2 has been reduced from 157.07 acres to 85.707 acres. Both agreements were finalized on April 2, according to a senior official at K-RIDE.

Yogesh Mohan, Divisional Railway Manager in Bengaluru, confirmed the completion of land registration formalities.

K-RIDE, which is overseeing the 149-km Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project, awarded L&T Limited the contract to design and construct viaducts for Corridor 4 (Kanaka Line) on December 30, 2023. However, the issuance of the Notice To Proceed (NTP) was delayed due to alignment approval and land agreement issues with the railways. With these obstacles now resolved, groundwork for Corridor 4 has commenced. The SWR approved the revised alignment plan for Corridor 4 in January. K-RIDE is also working on relocating utilities, addressing other physical obstacles, and acquiring private land for Corridor 4, as stated by another senior official.

Corridor 4, which will feature 19 stations, is slated for completion by December 2026, a challenging deadline considering the project's slow progress. Additionally, K-RIDE has submitted a revised alignment plan for Corridor 1 (KSR Bengaluru-Devanahalli/Airport, 41.4 km) to the SWR's Bengaluru division. Mohan mentioned that they had requested more details regarding the alignment of Corridor 1, which K-RIDE has provided. "The alignment is under approval. We are examining it," he stated.

In February, Minister for Infrastructure Development MB Patil set a deadline of December 2027 for Corridor 1, split into two phases for improved execution. The Yelahanka-Devanahalli section is expected to be completed by December 2026, while the KSR Bengaluru-Yelahanka section will be ready by December 2027.

Despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 40-month deadline set in June 2022 for the Rs 15,767-crore project, civil work contracts have been awarded for only two of the four corridors. Technical challenges and poor coordination between K-RIDE and the railways have been cited as major hurdles. Mohan acknowledged these challenges and assured that they were being addressed, adding that the railways was prepared to take over the project.

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rewrite: Indian authorities will be allowed to meet the 17 Indian crew members of an Israel-affiliated cargo vessel that was seized by Iranian commandoes in the Gulf of Hormuz over the weekend, Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has said.

Amir-Abdollahian gave the assurance while speaking on the phone with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar on Sunday evening, according to a readout on the conversation from Iran's foreign ministry. Jaishankar had brought up the release of the Indian crew members of the cargo vessel MSC Aries during the phone call.

"We are following up on the details of the seized ship and soon it will be possible for the representatives of the Indian government to meet with the crew of the said ship," the readout quoted Amir-Abdollahian as saying.

The readout said Jaishankar "expressed his concern about the situation of the 17 Indian crew members in the ship seized by Iran" and requested assistance from Iran in this regard.

Indian authorities had said hours after the vessel was seized by a special forces unit of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) about 80 km off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that they were in touch with their Iranian counterparts to ensure the security and early release of 17 Indian nationals among the 25-member crew of the ship.

The 17 Indians on board the Portuguese-flagged and Israel-affiliated cargo vessel include the master. The crew also has four Filipinos, two Pakistanis, one Russian, and one Estonian.

The Italian-Swiss shipping group MSC has said it is "working closely with the relevant authorities" to ensure the wellbeing of the crew. The ship is associated with London-based Zodiac Maritime, part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer's Zodiac Group.

Since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, India has taken action several times to protect ships with Indian crew members that were targeted by Iran's proxy forces such as the Houthi rebels of Yemen.

On Friday, India issued an advisory urging its citizens not to travel to Iran or Israel following the rise in tensions between the two sides. It also asked all Indian nationals living in the two countries to observe "utmost precautions".