Bengaluru: The Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) named Bhadra, which is working on the underground section of the Bengaluru Metro’s Pink Line, achieved a breakthrough at the Kadugondanahalli (KG Halli) station on Thursday evening. The machine had tunnelled for 1,185.80 metres (1.1 km) from Venkateshapura station, overcoming various challenges such as uneven geology, abandoned wells and damaged cutter discs.
The 1.1 km stretch is part of the 21.26 km (Reach 6) Metro line that will connect Kalena Agrahara and Nagawara, passing through major areas such as Jayanagar, Dairy Circle, M G Road and Shivajinagar. The line is expected to be commissioned by March 2025, according to Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL).
Bhadra, a German-made machine manufactured by Herrenknecht, is one of the nine TBMs deployed by BMRCL for the Phase 2 project. It is the first TBM to complete two legs of tunnelling for the Pink Line, having earlier drilled 822 metres from Venkateshpura to Tannery Road in July 2022. It will now be dragged across the KG Halli station box and relaunched for its third and final leg of 935 metres towards Nagawara station.
BMRCL officials said that the mainline testing of the prototype train for the Pink Line, which arrived at the Chennai port from China last week, will begin by March after undergoing depot-level tests. The prototype train, consisting of six cars, is the first driverless metro train in Bengaluru and will be followed by 35 more trains that will be manufactured in India by Titagarh Rail Systems Ltd, as part of the Make-in-India initiative.
The BMRCL also said that Kamaraj Road, which was closed for the construction of the M G Road underground station, will be opened for public use by April 2024. The road was shut in January 2020 and was supposed to reopen in December 2022, but was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and other issues. The M G Road station is one of the 12 underground stations on the Pink Line and will be an interchange station with the Purple Line.
With the latest breakthrough by Bhadra, BMRCL has completed 91 per cent of the total tunnelling work for Phase 2, with 19.12 km out of 20.99 km and 24 out of 26 tunnel breakthroughs achieved so far. The remaining two breakthroughs are expected by August 2024, as per BMRCL’s revised deadline
