Metro’s tryst with delays continues

Already drawing flak for its flip-flopping over the inauguration date of Metro Reach I, the BMRCL is now being targetted for the snail's pace work at Bangalore Underground Metro

Metro's tryst with delays continues

Already drawing flak for its flip-flopping over the inauguration date ofu00a0 Metro Reach I, the BMRCL is now being targetted for the snail's pace work at Bangalore Underground Metro.

According to BMRCL sources, the 42.3-km stretch will be operational only by the end of 2014 and not by 2012 as promised by the agency.

The Bangalore Metro carried out a series of tests on the underground stretch before undertaking the tunneling work.

The 42.3-km-underground Metro route will be operational only
by the end of 2014 because of the slow pace of work on the stretch

However, it has now come to light that huge rocks and granite in the soil have adversely affected progress of the work.

The BMRCL officials have been holding meetings with foreign engineers to resolve the issue, but are yet to make any headway.

Even though boring machines machines have the capability of tunneling at least 18 to 20 meters everyday, in the case of Bangalore Metro, progress has been drastically slow.

"The BMRCL does not have expert engineers on board to speed up work in a scientific and practical manner.

They claim that they had conducted a full-fledged study and yet the underground stretch is progressing at such a slow pace.

The delay in work is costing the state exchequer at least around Rs 65 lakh everyday," said M N Sreehari, Advisor to government on Infrastructure, Traffic and Transport.

Reacting on the slow progress of the project, BMRCL claimed that is just a roadblock and it would be resolved shortly.

"There is much granite and boulders, because of which the progress is slow. We are working out the issues and soon expect to dig 10 meters daily," said B L Y Chavan, spokesperson, BMRCL.