Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday (February 15) announced that, in addition to the existing metro rail, road, and suburban railway services connecting the city to Kempegowda International Airport, Indian Railways will soon introduce a dedicated train service. However, Vaishnaw mentioned that there are a few technical challenges that need to be addressed before this service can be launched, and the Railway team is actively working on resolving them.
Speaking to reporters, Vaishnaw noted that Bengaluru residents currently have access to the airport through Metro Rail, road, and the suburban railway project managed by the Rail Infrastructure Development Company (K-RIDE), a joint venture between the Centre and the state government. K-RIDE is under construction and aims to improve urban rail connectivity.
“Apart from Metro Rail, road and K-RIDE, we are also creating a railway connectivity option to the airport,” Vaishnaw said.
Recalling his previous visit, he mentioned that he had traveled by train from the airport to the city and found it to be a comfortable 40-45 minute ride. However, he also highlighted the technical challenges, particularly the need to build a rail flyover.
“I realised it was a comfortable 40 to 45-minute ride. However, there were some technical issues, particularly the need to construct a rail flyover. The team has now completed the necessary work and they presented the concept to me today. I will share it with you soon. This will bring significant relief to the people,” the Minister said.
Suburban Rail project faces setbacks
On the subject of the suburban railway project, Vaishnaw expressed concern over the state government’s execution, noting the lack of technical expertise, including the absence of a full-time Managing Director from the Railway technical cadre. He emphasized the need for fast expansion of metro and suburban rail networks in Bengaluru, a city with a population of 1.5 crore.
“It’s a very large city, and we need to rapidly expand metro and suburban rail networks. The state and Centre must work in a synchronised manner,” he pointed out.
Shortage of technical personnel
He also shared that the main challenge in the K-RIDE project has been the shortage of technical personnel, urging the state government to appoint a full-time MD from the Railway technical cadre to speed up progress.
“The project’s execution is not meeting public expectations. We need a strong technical team to fulfill the high hopes of the people,” Vaishnaw stated. He also stressed the need for at least 12-13 qualified personnel in areas like electrical engineering, civil engineering, and signaling. “We will propose this to the state government and, if they agree, we can depute railway officials to K-RIDE to expedite the project,” he added.
Funding to be provided by Centre
Vaishnaw further clarified that the Centre is providing the necessary funding, so financial constraints should not be an issue. A major challenge faced by the project has been the repeated failure of tenders for train sets (rolling stock). To address this, he revealed that the Railways will now supply the trains for the Bengaluru suburban rail project.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the way K-RIDE structured the tenders for train procurement, Vaishnaw pointed out that the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model adopted by K-RIDE, where a private entity would supply the trains and receive payments over several years, is not suitable for the metro and railway sectors.
Regarding the circular rail project around Bengaluru, Vaishnaw shared that the concept is now finalized. “Bengaluru is connected to the city by seven railway spokes, and about a year and a half ago, we introduced the idea of a circular rail network,” he explained.
He also addressed concerns related to metro train manufacturing, stating, “Although this does not fall under the Railway’s purview, we will do our best to ensure that the people of Bengaluru get the best facilities. Our priority should be providing good services, regardless of whether it falls under the state or Centre’s domain.”