Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday virtually inaugurated the extended sections of the Purple Line of the Bengaluru metro between Kengeri-Challaghatta and KR Pura-Baiyappanahalli.
Following public demand, the two sections were opened to the public on October 9 without an official inauguration. The opening of this line bridged the gap between the areas in the far east and western parts of the city, bringing the total length of the Purple Line from Whitefield to Challaghatta to nearly 44 km.
The 2.1 km KR Pura-Baiyappanahalli section was a crucial link between the Baiyappanhalli (and the rest of the Purple Line) and the Whitefield extension that was inaugurated earlier this year, on March 25, and opened to the public the next day.
Although the line brought much relief to commuters, the missing link proved a challenge to navigate for thousands of people who had to take a feeder bus between the Baiyappanahalli and KR Pura stations.
The metro ridership jumped to 6.8 lakh on October 9, the day the sections were opened to the public. Average daily ridership has consistently been increasing ever since, now comfortably soaring above the 7 lakh mark, very close to hitting nearly 7.5 lakh average daily ridership expected by the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL).
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, along with Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, State Institute for Transformation of Karnataka's vice chairperson Rajeev Gowda, MLA S T Somashekar, and others joined in on the virtual meeting at the Krishna Office on Kumara Krupa Road in the city on Friday.
Published 20 October 2023, 09:01 IST