‘Is building a metro pillar rocket science?’ Minister Krishna Byre Gowda raps BMRCL for delays in airport line

Bengaluru:Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda on Wednesday slammed the BMRCL authorities for the sluggish pace of work on the airport line. 

"Is building a metro pillar rocket science? Do you need two to three years to finish just one pillar? If you can't complete the work, at least free the road for traffic," he said, as senior BMRCL officials listened. 

Gowda represents the Byatarayanapura assembly constituency, which includes parts of the 38.44-km KR Pura-Airport stretch on the Blue Line. 

He inspected the stretch between Nagawara and Allalasandra, near Yelahanka. 

Officials have dumped unnecessary materials used for metro work at the site without proper disposal, he stated. 

He made it clear that delays in metro construction were causing problems for the public and sought to know why the work cannot be completed quickly. 

Gowda questioned officials for not making any arrangements for water drainage during rains. He also pointed out the quality of roads is deteriorating because of the metro construction and said people were frustrated with round-the-clock traffic jams. 

"Day or night, traffic here is always clogged," he pointed to the Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Nagawara. He instructed the BMRCL to finish the work quickly and, until then, at least ensure basic arrangements for smooth traffic flow. 

BMRCL Managing Director J Ravishankar and other senior officials were present during the inspection. 

Construction on the KR Pura-KIA metro corridor was held up for nine months in 2023 due to a fatal accident in HBR Layout. 

While construction has picked up, the BMRCL cannot make up for lost time as it's facing a shortage of construction workers, according to a senior official. 

The official explained the challenges in construction, stating that work had been held up near Kasturi Nagar and Banaswadi due to delays in traffic police permission. 

As of September, civil work on the Hebbal-airport stretch (27.44 km) was 57% complete, while the KR Pura-Hebbal section was only 40% complete, according to the BMRCL. 

On the Benniganahalli-Kempapura section, pier work is 73% complete, caps, beams and tiebeams 60%, and girders 33%. For the Kempapura-Yelahanka stretch, the respective figures are 89%, 74% and 61%, according to BLR Metro Tracker. 

The BMRCL plans to open the Blue Line in three phases. The Silk Board-KR Pura (19.75km) section will open by September 2026, Hebbal-airport (27.44 km) in June 2027, and KR Pura-Hebbal in December 2027. 

Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda during an inspection of the metro