Buckling under protests and pressure over the distance between the Cantonment railway station and the proposed metro station, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) is conducting a resurvey of the alignment to place the metro station closer.
BMRCL sources said the survey will detail the costs and challenges of realigning the underground line through Cantonment railway station, as listed in the original detailed project report (DPR) prepared by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation in September 2011.
The subsequent shifting of the line to pass under a playground at Bamboo Bazaar, some 300 m away from the existing station, had sparked off protests by residents as well as transport activists who say this will effectively break the link between the railway station and the metro network. The BMRCL, however, has been adamant, claiming that this alignment would save more than ₹1,000 crore and over 800 metres of tunnelling work (and thereby construction time).
Place for shaft
An official said one of the challenges to be highlighted through the survey will be finding a place for a shaft between Cantonment railway station and Pottery Town metro station, some 1.6 km away. “This shaft, which will have air circulation systems and emergency evacuation in case of a metro breakdown, will have to come some 700 m from the stations on this line. The one acre required for the shaft will entail demolitions close to Nandidurga Road,” the official said.
The report is expected to be ready within 10 days, after which it will be presented to the State government. “It is then up to the government to determine whether to go ahead with the proposed line or the new line,” the official said.
For activists who have been protesting the change from the DPR alignment, the resurvey is a “positive step” that could prove their point. “The survey may disprove all the challenges the BMRCL has been claiming will hinder the construction of the line, including tunnelling under railway lines or length of the tunnel. Moreover, for the shaft it is possible to find areas where demolitions can be minimised,” said Sanjeev V. Dyamannavar, an urban commute activist from the non-government organisation Praja.
