With only three months remaining on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 40-month deadline for the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project, progress has come to a complete standstill. The cause is a major contractual dispute between Rail Infrastructure Development Company-Karnataka (K-Ride), the agency overseeing the initiative, and engineering giant Larsen & Toubro (L&T).
L&T, responsible for building two major lines — Benniganahalli-Chikkabanavara (Corridor-2) and Heelalige-Rajanukunte (Corridor-4) — has abruptly withdrawn from the project. It alleges that K-Ride failed to hand over required land parcels, remove encroachments, and shift obstructing utilities. Claiming “employer defaults,” L&T has approached the court to prevent K-Ride from encashing bank guarantees and is demanding ₹505 crore for completed works and financial damages.
K-Ride called the termination “unjustified and illegal,” stating it demonstrated L&T’s lack of seriousness. It argued that the firm failed to mobilise equipment and delayed design finalisation, slowing progress. The agency asserted it had cleared 84% of Corridor-2 and 17km of Corridor-4 for construction.
Launched with high expectations in June 2022, the 148km network has seen just 22% execution, despite 96% of the project timeline elapsing.
Senior K-Ride officials recently consulted Infrastructure Development Minister MB Patil and are now exploring alternative ways to resume and accelerate construction.
With over two decades of delays already plaguing the project, this fresh setback raises serious questions about the timely delivery of Bengaluru’s much-needed mass transit solution.