In a significant move for the Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project (BSRP), the Karnataka Rail Infrastructure Development Company (KRIDE) has awarded a Rs 5 billion contract to Nagarjuna Construction Company (NCC) for the construction of eight stations under Package C2A of Corridor 2. The contract stipulates that the work should be completed within 24 months.

Corridor 2, which connects Benniganahalli to Chikkabanavar over a distance of 25 km, includes a mix of 8.02 km of elevated track and 17.55 km of at-grade track. The corridor comprises 12 stations divided into two packages: C2A and C2B. Package C2A includes the construction of eight stations, covering civil, structural, and architectural works, alongside plumbing, facades, and electrical and mechanical (E&M) installations.

The stations included in this package are Benniganahalli (elevated interchange), Kasturi Nagar (at-grade), Seva Nagar (at-grade), Banaswadi (at-grade), Nagawara (elevated), Kanaka Nagar (elevated), Hebbal (at-grade), and Mathikere (elevated). The scope of the work involves constructing steel foot overbridges, roof structures, pre-engineered buildings (PEB), and detailed design and engineering (DDC) for allied works. The remaining four stations—Yeshwanthpur, Shettyahalli, Mydarahalli, and Chikkabanavara—are part of Package C2B, for which a separate tender process will follow.

Nagarjuna Construction Company emerged as the lowest bidder, surpassing Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) and J. Kumar Infra Projects Ltd in the tender for Package C2A, which was issued on June 15, 2024. KRIDE completed the process by issuing the Letter of Acceptance (LoA) to NCC on December 31, 2024.

N. Manjula, Managing Director of K-RIDE, noted that there are 62 instances of encroachments along this corridor, primarily involving private buildings and other unauthorised structures on railway land, which have caused delays in the development process. The civil works contract for Corridor 2 was awarded to L&T Limited in August 2022.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka government has agreed to procure rolling stock for the BSRP through an equity share model with the central government, following the failure to secure a contract for rolling stock under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.