PM Modi takes a ride to Electronics City on Namma Metro's newly-launched Yellow Line route

Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Bengaluru's newest metro corridor — the 19.15-km Yellow Line — on Sunday.

Modi drove from the KSR Bengaluru railway station to the Ragigudda metro station after flagging off three Vande Bharat trains.

At Ragigudda, he was given a tour of the metro station, and waved to jubilant crowds assembled there.

State government officials briefed him on the Yellow Line, its route and stations. In particular, he was given a low-down on the Jayadeva Hospital station, the tallest in South India.

Jayadeva Hospital, a multi-tier elevated station, will be an interchange between the Yellow and Pink lines.

Modi later purchased a ticket to the Electronics City metro station by scanning a QR code and paying through UPI.

He is participating in a public programme at the International Institute of Information Technology Bangalore (IIITB), where he will also lay the foundation stone for Namma Metro's Phase 3.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his deputy DK Shivakumar, Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar, MPs LS Tejasvi Surya and Dr CN Manjunath, and BMRCL officials were present on the occasion.

Built over eight years for Rs 7,610 crore, the 19.15-km fully elevated Yellow Line connects RV Road to Bommasandra via Silk Board Junction and Electronics City. It provides metro connectivity to southern and southeastern Bengaluru and is aimed at decongesting Silk Board Junction.

Train operations on the Yellow Line will begin at 5 am on August 11 with a 25-minute frequency.

The Bengaluru Metro network expands to 96.1 km, the longest after Delhi.