The European Investment Bank (EIB) Friday formally announced a Euro 300 million loan for the under-construction Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project (BSRP).
The announcement was made at a meeting in Gandhinagar between EIB Vice-President Nicola Beer and Awadhesh Mehta, Director of Finance, Rail Infrastructure Development Company (Karnataka) Ltd, also referred to as K-RIDE.
BSRP is proposed to be implemented on an equity-funded model with equal contribution from the Centre (20 per cent) and the state government (20 per cent), and the remaining amount (60 per cent) raised from multilateral agencies.
EIB has already granted a Euro 500 million loan to build the 23 km-long Bengaluru Metro R6 line and purchase a fleet of about 96 Metro cars. EIB estimates that once the BSRP project is fully operational, the Bengaluru transport system will see a 43 per cent drop in CO2 emissions.
The estimated daily ridership will be approximately 4,00,000 trips per day in 2029, the first year of full operation, and is expected to increase to about 1.4 million trips per day in 2040, largely aligned with the projected population growth, EIB said in a press statement.
Beer said: “The European Investment Bank is honoured to finance the Bengaluru Suburban Railway Network with a Euro 300 million loan. This funding complements the Euro 500 million we allocated for the construction of the Bengaluru Metro R6 line, addressing Bengaluru’s mobility challenges by developing a clean, modern and efficient public transport system. The two projects we are financing in Bengaluru aim to create India’s most integrated rail network, providing seamless connectivity with all other modes of public transport in the city.”
She added, “The Bengaluru suburban railway network includes design features to enhance access, safety, and security for women, and supports women’s participation in construction works. The project is therefore expected to have a significant positive impact for women in Bengaluru, especially in terms of affordable, safe, and secure access to economic and social functions.”
The Euro 300 million loan agreement with EIB was inked on June 14, 2024. Additionally, a loan agreement of Euro 500 million for BSRP was also signed with Germany-based KfW on December 15, 2023.
About BSRP and project progress
BSRP is divided into four corridors – Corridor 1 (41.4 km) connecting KSR Bengaluru City to Devanahalli; Corridor 2 (25.01 km) connecting Baiyyappanahalli Terminal to Chikkabanavara; Corridor 3 (35.52 km) connecting Kengeri to Whitefield (via KSR and Cantonment); and Corridor 4 (46.24 km) connecting Heelalige to Rajankunte.
In June 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised that the government would complete BSRP in 40 months, “which the previous governments failed to do in the last 40 years”. Forty-eight months have passed since the big promise, but the construction of BSRP is far from over.
So far, construction works have commenced only on Corridor 2. The civil works tender was awarded to L&T Limited in August 2022. The latest alignment plans for Corridor 1 have been submitted for approval to the Indian Railways in August 2024. Meanwhile, a tender for civil works was floated for Corridor 1 in July 2024. The alignment drawing of Corridor 3 was submitted to the Bengaluru Division of the South Western Railway and K-RIDE is awaiting approval for the same. Finally, for Corridor 4, the civil works tender was awarded to L&T on December 2023 and private land acquisition and other preliminary works are in progress.
