The Kanpur Metro expansion reached another milestone with the arrival of the ninth train for Corridor-2, between Chandra Shekhar Azad Agricultural University (CSA)-Barra-8 on August 21 (Friday). The announcement was made by the UP Metro Rail Corporation Limited (UPMRCL) on X (earlier known as Twitter).
The train arrived at the under-construction metro depot at the CSA premises on Friday. According to UPMRC, nine of the 10 trains being manufactured for Corridor-2 at Alstom’s Savli plant in Gujarat have now reached Kanpur. The trains are being manufactured in India under the government’s Make in India programme.
But the arrival of the ninth train also comes at a point when the larger Kanpur Metro project is nearing completion of its first phase.
The 32.385-km Kanpur Metro project had achieved 80.45% physical progress and 78.5% financial progress as of February 28, 2026, according to a Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs reply in the Rajya Sabha.
The project is not yet fully operational. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs said in a Rajya Sabha reply that 15.1 km of Kanpur Metro was operational as of February 28, 2026.
UPMRC’s 2024-25 annual report says passenger services currently run across 14 stations from IIT Kanpur to Kanpur Central, while construction is continuing on the remaining section of Corridor-1 — Jhakkarkati Bus Terminal to Naubasta — and the entire Corridor-2 from CSA to Barra-8.
What is the Kanpur Metro project?
Kanpur Metro Phase-I comprises two corridors with a combined length of 32.385 km.
| Corridor | Route | Length | Elevated | Underground | Stations |
| Corridor-1 | IIT Kanpur–Naubasta | 23.785 km | 15.164 km | 8.621 km | 21 |
| Corridor-2 | CSA Agricultural University–Barra-8 | 8.60 km | 4.190 km | 4.410 km | 8 |
| Total | — | 32.385 km | 19.354 km | 13.031 km | 29 |
These are the project dimensions specified by UPMRC in its project documentation. Corridor-1 has 14 elevated and seven underground stations, while Corridor-2 has four elevated and four underground stations in the original project design. UPMRC’s more recent annual report describes Corridor-2 as having five elevated and three underground stations, reflecting changes in the station configuration.
How much has been completed?
The latest directly verifiable government progress figure comes from a Rajya Sabha answer dated March 23, 2026.
It said:
- Total project length: 32.385 km
- Physical progress: 80.45%
- Financial progress: 78.5%
- Operational network: 15.1 km as of February 28, 2026
UPMRC’s 2024-25 annual report subsequently described passenger operations as covering 16 km and 14 stations from IIT Kanpur to Kanpur Central. The extension from Motijheel to Kanpur Central was inaugurated on May 30, 2025.
The operational network currently covers roughly half of the full 32.4-km Phase-I network.
Which part of Kanpur Metro is operational?
Kanpur Metro opened its first passenger section on December 28, 2021, when the 9-km IIT Kanpur-Motijheel priority corridor was inaugurated.
The first 9-km priority section from IIT Kanpur to Motijheel, comprising nine elevated stations, was commissioned on December 28, 2021. UPMRC’s 2024-25 annual report describes it as being completed in a “national record time of 2 years and 1.5 months”.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs said in a PIB release dated December 28, 2021, that work on the 9-km IIT Kanpur–Motijheel priority corridor was completed in less than two years.
Passenger operations were subsequently extended to Kanpur Central on May 30, 2025.
The extension added five underground stations:
- Chunniganj
- Naveen Market
- Bada Chauraha
- Nayaganj
- Kanpur Central
What remains on Corridor-1?
The remaining section of Corridor-1 runs from Kanpur Central to Naubasta.
UPMRC’s annual report identifies this as an approximately 8-km balance section, comprising seven stations:
- Jhakarkati Bus Terminal
- Transport Nagar
- Baradevi
- Kidwai Nagar
- Vasant Vihar
- Baudh Nagar
- Naubasta
Once completed, Corridor-1 will connect IIT Kanpur with Naubasta over its full 23.8-km length and have 21 stations.
A statutory safety inspection of the Kanpur Central-Naubasta section was completed in June 2026, covering civil structures, track, signalling, power supply, rolling stock and emergency systems.
That indicates Corridor-1 is considerably further along than Corridor-2.
And what about Corridor-2?
Corridor-2 runs from CSA Agricultural University to Barra-8 and is 8.6 km long.
It will connect areas including Kakadeo and Govind Nagar with the Metro network and comprises elevated and underground sections. The UPMRC annual report 2024-25 says construction of all eight stations is progressing.
Construction of Corridor-2 began in phases in 2024. UPMRC said in July 2024 that work on both sections of the approximately 8.6-km corridor had commenced.
The corridor has also seen major tunnelling milestones. By March 2026, tunnelling work had reached completion with breakthroughs involving the project’s tunnel boring machines.
And now, nine of the 10 trains ordered for Corridor-2 have reached Kanpur.
That means the rolling-stock side of the Blue Line is substantially ahead of the corridor’s eventual commercial launch.
How much does Kanpur Metro cost?
The original sanctioned project cost is ₹11,076.48 crore. The Union Cabinet approved the project in February 2019 at an estimated cost of ₹11,076.48 crore, with a planned completion period of five years.
The Union government subsequently reiterated the same completion cost when the first 9-km section was inaugurated in December 2021. The project works out to roughly ₹342 crore per km based on the sanctioned project cost and 32.385-km network length.
How much money has been released?
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, in its reply to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 926 on February 5, 2026, reported that ₹6,667.59 crore had been sanctioned for the Kanpur Metro Project between 2020-21 and 2025-26, with ₹6,096.50 crore released and ₹6,096.50 crore covered by utilisation certificates.
The annual figures were:
| Financial year | Funds sanctioned | Funds released |
| 2020-21 | ₹1,136.00 crore | ₹1,136.00 crore |
| 2021-22 | ₹2,012.00 crore | ₹2,012.00 crore |
| 2022-23 | ₹1,156.75 crore | ₹1,156.75 crore |
| 2023-24 | ₹1,472.50 crore | ₹1,472.50 crore |
| 2024-25 | ₹262.25 crore | ₹262.25 crore |
| 2025-26 | ₹628.09 crore | ₹57.00 crore |
| Total | ₹6,667.59 crore | ₹6,096.50 crore |
The ₹11,076.48 crore figure is the overall project cost, while the figures above refer specifically to funds sanctioned and released through the government funding mechanism captured in the parliamentary document.
What is the train order?
Kanpur Metro’s Phase-I fleet is being manufactured domestically.
In a statement issued in September 2022, UPMRC said Kanpur Metro’s two corridors would be served by 39 three-coach trains.
The trains use Communication-Based Train Control (CBTC) signalling technology and are designed for automatic train operation. They are being manufactured at Alstom’s Savli plant in Gujarat.
For Corridor-2 specifically, 10 trainsets have been ordered, and nine have now reached Kanpur.
What does the project mean for Kanpur?
The original project was designed to provide mass rapid transit connectivity across major residential, educational, commercial and transport hubs of the city.
When the Union Cabinet approved the ₹11,076.48-crore Kanpur Metro project on February 28, 2019, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs estimated that around 40 lakh people would benefit directly and indirectly from the project once commercial operations began.
The network is also designed to integrate with existing railway and bus transport, including major railway stations and bus terminals.
Kanpur Metro at a glance
| Parameter | Status/details |
| Total Phase-I length | 32.385 km |
| Corridors | 2 |
| Total stations | 29 in project design |
| Corridor-1 | IIT Kanpur–Naubasta, 23.785 km |
| Corridor-2 | CSA–Barra-8, 8.6 km |
| Underground length | 13.031 km |
| Elevated length | 19.354 km |
| Original sanctioned cost | ₹11,076.48 crore |
| Physical progress | 80.45% as of February 28, 2026 |
| Financial progress | 78.5% as of February 28, 2026 |
| Operational section | IIT Kanpur–Kanpur Central, ~16 km |
| Operational stations | 14 |
| Corridor-2 trains received | 9 of 10 |
| Corridor-2 route | CSA–Barra-8 |
| Corridor-2 length | 8.6 km |
Sources: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Rajya Sabha; UPMRC Annual Report 2024-25; UPMRC project documents; PIB.
The bigger picture
Kanpur Metro has moved well beyond the experimental stage. The city now has a functioning IIT Kanpur-Kanpur Central metro corridor, while construction is approaching the final stages across the remaining sections.
With nine of the 10 Corridor-2 trainsets already in Kanpur, tunnelling work completed and construction continuing on the eight-station corridor, the next major question is no longer whether Kanpur will get its second Metro corridor.
It is how quickly the remaining civil, systems, safety and commissioning work can turn the 8.6-km CSA-Barra-8 corridor into a passenger-ready line.