State Railways sort out two-decades old issues over Bengaluru suburban Project
Meeting jointly chaired by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and CM Kumaraswamy
Bengaluru, Feb 22: Decks were cleared Friday for the implementation of the two-decades old suburban railway project for the city with contentious issues being sorted out at a meeting jointly chaired by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy.
Today the Railway minister took all decisions... He sorted out all the issues, Kumaraswamy told reporters after the meeting, attended by officials of the two sides.
Goyal described it as a "world class project" and said all the issues have been resolved.
He said the Centre changed its suburban railway policy amending the state and the central contribution from 80:20 to 50:50 ration.
The about Rs 17,000 crore and 160-km long project which seeks to connect the city with its suburbs has been approved by the state government recently.
In December last year, Goyal had pushed for expediting the project when a delegation led by JDS supremo and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy met him in New Delhi to discuss the project.
The project in pipeline for two decades was announced in the union budget for 2018-19 to cater to the growth of Bengaluru Metropolis subject to mandatory approvals and sanction.
The state government had raised 19 issues, including extension of the project to important satellite towns and economically important clusters, connectivity to airport, cost of railway land on nominal lease basis and development of stations in phases.
Goyal Friday said there will be 12 interchanges and the plan drawn up was of international standard.
"At some point there will be three levels.There will be road, Metro and Railways. It is a world class project we are bringing to a world class city, the railway minister said.
The railways also agreed to give Rs 6,000 crore worth land free of charge for the project.
The land will be given at Re 1 token lease rent, which is outside the suburban policy... So, it is actually free of charge, Goyal added.
Regarding the Kolar Railway coach factory, he said it will be reviewed as the focus was on the optimum usage of the Raebareli Coach factory.
The Raebareli factory was not manufacturing coaches when the government took over in 2014. However, its production capacity was now 711 coaches and the aim was to increase it to 1,420 coaches annually.
He took a veiled dig at Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, who represents Raebareli, saying though coach factory was announced in 2007 during the UPA regime, not a single coach was manufactured till 2014.
"It is constituency of a very senior leader, so the project was set up there. All the machines were lying idle.
I don't know what corruption happened there, Goyal said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Metro ridership in Haryana sees over 13 pc rise in 2025-26
Chandigarh (PTI): Haryana's urban transit system witnessed a strong growth in 2025-26, with metro ridership registering a robust 13.55 per cent increase, the state government said in a statement on Thursday.
The progress was reviewed in the 64th board meeting of Haryana Mass Rapid Transport Corporation (HMRTC) chaired by Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi.
Between April 2025 and February 2026, the metro network recorded over 1.74 crore passengers, compared to 1.53 crore in the corresponding period the previous year.
July recorded the highest monthly growth at 22.93 per cent, while all months showed consistent positive trends.
Financial performance has also remained strong, with fare revenue rising 12.64 per cent till January 2026, the statement said.
Non-fare revenue surged by 108 per cent, driven by effective monetisation of station spaces, advertisements and commercial activities, resulting in an operating surplus for Rapid Metro.
Further initiatives, including the auction of station naming rights and additional advertisement sites, are expected to strengthen HMRTC's financial position, the statement said.
Appreciating the performance, Rastogi stated that the consistent rise in ridership and revenue reflects the success of Haryana's integrated transport strategy, rising commuter confidence and a clear shift towards public transport.
HMRTC Managing Director Chander Shekhar Khare said that, alongside operational gains, the state is making steady progress on an ambitious pipeline of metro and regional transit projects.
Metro connectivity from Gurugram Sector 56 to Panchgaon is under active consideration, with Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited studying the Detailed Project Report (DPR) and layout plan, and finalising a depot location in Sector 36A near Sihi village, he said.
The Gurugram-Faridabad Namo Bharat corridor has achieved a key milestone, with alignment and station locations finalised and approved by the Haryana government. The National Capital Region Transport Corporation is preparing the DPR, he added.
Similarly, the Delhi-Kundli metro extension is proposed to be placed before the Haryana Cabinet for approval.
The 136.3-kilometre Delhi-Panipat-Karnal RRTS Corridor has also progressed, with the revised DPR submitted for financial concurrence ahead of Haryana Cabinet consideration.
Within Gurugram, DPR preparation has been approved for key intra-city corridors, including the 17.09-kilometre Bhondsi-Subhash Chowk-Rajeev Chowk-Sohna Chowk Railway Station corridor, enhancing connectivity along Sohna Road, Khare said.
