The Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS), Southern Circle has approved the commencement of operations for the K.R. Pura to Baiyappanahalli stretch of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), while it is scheduled to conduct an inspection of the Challaghatta-Kengeri line on September 29.
A senior official from BMRCL confirmed to The Hindu that the CMRS has issued safety authorisation to BMRCL to commission the K.R. Pura and Baiyappanahalli line. Meanwhile, the official also said that the CMRS inspection of Kengeri - Challaghatta section will be done on September 29. Last week, the CMRS completed the inspection of the eagerly awaited Baiyappanahalli-K.R. Pura section (2 km) of Namma Metro. Both stretches are likely to be opened for commercial operation in October.
Before the Karnataka Assembly election dates were announced, the BMRCL inaugurated a 13.71 km metro line from K.R. Pura to Whitefield, which are 12 stations. However, a nearly 2 km segment between Baiyappanahalli and K.R. Pura remained unopened due to pending work.
As a result of this missing link, metro commuters are compelled to rely on feeder services for a 5 km journey to reach K.R. Puram after disembarking at Baiyappanahalli. These feeder services, operated by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), serve approximately 8,000 passengers daily.
After the opening of both the Baiyappanahalli-K.R. Pura and Kengeri-Challaghatta sections to the public, the entire 44-km Purple Line, connecting Whitefield to Challaghatta, will become fully operational.
