Meera Srinivasan hops across the offices of The Hindu on Anna Salai to chat up engineers toiling away at the site
In just a few years, I could be standing at the same spot — 20 metres below the ground — waiting to take a train back home. This thought came to my mind on Thursday morning as I walked into the construction site where Chennai Metro Rail Ltd is building the Government Estate metro station.
Gigantic machines, against the backdrop of the abandoned Secretariat complex, seem to be hard at work with a mind of their own, even as men sporting helmets in different colours walk around like Lilliputians. The engineers insist that the photographer and I wear the necessary ‘PPE' (personal protective equipment) — a helmet, safety jacket and shoes before proceeding on a guided tour of the site.
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Imposing machinery apart, makeshift tents, canteen, first-aid centre and toilets comprise the space inside the cordoned-off area. It is a town in itself and is inhabited by over a hundred workers, toiling away day and night.
One of the seven underground stations along Anna Salai, the Government Estate station will be connected to Chintadripet MRTS station nearby.
Engineering marvel
As senior engineers patiently explain the various processes involved in construction, often interrupted by rather basic questions from me, civil engineering suddenly seems like an exotic discipline.
Typically, work on any station begins with the diversion of the various utilities in the area — water pipes, sewer lines and telecom wires. With this work completed for the area under construction, the collective energy of nearly 100 people is currently focussed on building diaphragm walls.
“The wall, about 1 metre thick, will go as deep as 25 metres. The tracks for the metro will be laid at a depth of around 16 metres. The station, too, will be built at nearly that depth,” an engineer said.
To be erected on all four sides, the walls form an outer shell within which the station will be built. A total of 81 concrete panels, each 6.5 metres wide, will be used for the outer structure. So far, 30 panels have been cast underground.
Once the outer shell is complete, excavation work will begin to make way for the station within. The Government Estate station will have four entry-exit points, two on either side of Anna Salai.
Tunnelling ahead
Once considerable work on the station is complete, underground tunnelling work will be undertaken to connect different stations. As many as eleven Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) will be used to drill through the earth and form tunnels. “Five TBMs have already arrived from China by sea,” said the engineer.
Four TBMs have been allocated for the seven underground stations along Anna Salai. Two of them will be used for the Saidapet to Gemini stretch for the stations at Saidapet, Chamiers Road, Teynampet and Gemini. Two others will be used for the stretch from Gemini to Government Estate tunnelling stations at Thousand Lights, LIC and Government Estate.
Tunnelling work is likely to begin from the site at May Day park in September.
Keywords: CMRL, Chennai Metro Rail
VSB, "When the Metro system is completed the public transport should be reduced making way only for scooters and cars." the most arrogant statement i heard on this subject. Cars are not for Indian conditions - roads/traffic sense/population etc. ideally cars should be banned once metro is in.
Chennai needs not just 45 km of METRO RAIL. We need about 350 km - mostly underground to sustain the system and the whole project should be of Global standards and Global size. Let us come out of our self imposed shells, doubting Thomas attitudes and appluad the engineers. Well done guys! Keep it up. If the state Government is serious of achieving a self sustainable global quality system they should invite Mr.Sreedharan to come back from retirement and atleast take up an advisory position to guide the Chennai Metro Rail.
The 'abandoned' Secretariat complex should be upgraded and re occupied setting aside the Ego and personal politics. The whole state should rise up and demand this. Hope better sense will prevail and what is fair and correct should be done. When Ms.Sasikala can go back to Poes Garden, why the Secratriat can not go back to its beautiful and well designed new home?
Hey Chennaites ,
Unless we people learn to be clean , keep our surroundings clean and follow rules we are not going to achieve much . I often wonder if people on the cars can throw and spit and men on roads in various attairs using our open spaces as laterines,where on earth we are going to grow . Its high time people using the roads as laterines are fined Rs 100 minimum and with this amount we could build toilets all over the place .Why is it only men use the roads and not the women. Its only because they are not bothered . Rules and punishments should be strictly adhered to for and clean and prosperous india. Hope somebody reads this .
Underground metro rail systems provide excellent connectivity and undisrupted services in
cities like Tokyo. While we build this network in Chennai we should learn from countries like
Japan on how to operate them very efficiently and provide complete safety to passengers.
While we received loans from Japan to build the chennai Metro it's time we approach Japan
and update our knowledge on how to manage these networks. This cannot be learnt in India
through a classroom training, people have to go to Tokyo.
people were raising the same questions about Calcutta metro and today it
is wonderful. of course, the people over there used to tobacco and
spitting often are well disciplined that they take a paper,roll it up
whenever they want to spit, carry and throw it in the dustbin when they
get down. if such a discipline can come here to madrasis things would be
wonderful. otherwise, god save Chennai!!!!!
Your words "against the backdrop of the abandoned Secretariat complex",
is worth considering on waste of public money.
When you can book 24*7 power supply with "some company" why cant the state government think of providing the same solution to houses in
Tamil Nadu as well.
Only in Tamil Nadu there seems to be an eternal power problem while it seems non existent in other States.Why should we alone suffer.
Great to see good progress by the CMRL. I feel CMRL would have more
operational distance than BMRCL by the end of 2015.
Chennai city is a small place when you compare this with the cities like Delhi and Mumbai.The infrastructure available for the public transport system is not sufficient.When the Metro system is completed the public transport should be reduced making way only for scooters and cars. This is in view of the narrow roads.Only then ,public will have a comfortable driving in Anna Salai
The basic underpass from the Park town station to Central station is in such a bad condition that all the public use the main road to commute. When an underpass which is present is not in a condition to be utilised, how clean and feasible will the so called underground metro network.The train route between Beach and Velachery is also not properly maintained at all. Nice buildings and massive constructions done once, no maintainence at all.
Dear Ramu. In reply to your doubts: 1. When huge investment is made to built these projects like Metro rails the required power is already booked with some company on 24*7 basis but still if power fails the back up system provide turns on.
2. Full flagged drain system with pumps to dewater huge ammount of water enables almost zero accumlation of water which is not present in the subways.
3. land acquisition in a metro city is a difficult game so to avoid it metro rails are oftenly made run through the tunnels moreover tracks laid down on bridges have less life than compared to those underground ones.
All these details are good, but can we please understand following
things
1. with frequent powercuts, how are they going to ensure passengers
are not suffocated in the underground stations with no aircondition
2. with a light drizzle, chennai subways are full of water. what would
happen if the whole underground station is flooded ?
3. It is said that underground stations are 4 times costlier to
maintain than above ground stations. Why then go for underground,
instead a one-time spend can be done to clear the structures along the
road and construct above the ground.
Chennai does not underground railway given the pitfalls. This will
lead to avoidable disasters.
Waiting eagerly to travel in Metro!!!! :)
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