Setback for Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project: L&T quits over land delays, BJP MPs slam government
Bangalore Central MP PC Mohan said the exit reflects a 'betrayal' of Bengalureans. 'L&T exits Bengaluru Suburban Rail Corridors 2 and 4 citing only 8.28% land handover in 2 years. K-RIDE failed because the State Government did not clear land in time. This delay betrays Bengalureans. The Congress Govt must fix K-RIDE and remove land hurdles immediately,' Mohan posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Echoing similar concerns, Bangalore South MP Tejasvi Surya blamed the state's lack of urgency. 'Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project is struggling due to @KridePrm's bureaucratic chaos,' he wrote. 'This reflects the current state of governance, a lack of initiative and interest by the state in moving things forward.'
The criticism comes after L&T has formally terminated its contract for executing Corridors 2 and 4 of BSRP. In a letter addressed to the Managing Director of the Rail Infrastructure Development Company (Karnataka) Ltd (K-RIDE), L&T cited the failure to provide sufficient encumbrance-free land, which rendered further construction unfeasible, The New India Express reported.
According to the publication, the letter stated that since the Letter of Acceptance was issued in August 2022, only 8.28% of usable land had been handed over to the contractor despite repeated assurances. This led to massive cost overruns, idle resources, and project delays. Following this, L&T submitted a closure report and approached the Commercial Court in Bengaluru, which has now granted an interim injunction restraining K-RIDE from invoking L&T's bank guarantees.
Additionally, L&T is seeking approximately ₹500 crore in compensation for Corridor 2 and about ₹150 crore for Corridor 4, the TNIE report added.
The termination is a major setback for the ₹15,767 crore suburban railway project, originally sanctioned in October 2020 with a six-year completion timeline.
(Also Read: DK Shivakumar says over 9,700 garbage complaints resolved in Bengaluru, residents react)
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