PM Modi inaugurates Pink Line, buys metro ticket and travels with Shivakumar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday inaugurated the 7.5-kilometre elevated section of the Bengaluru Metro's Pink Line, which stretches from Kalyana Nagar to Tavarekere. With the commencement of this section, the city's active metro network has expanded to 103.6 kilometres, making Bengaluru the second-largest city in the country in this regard, after Delhi.

After the inauguration, the Prime Minister travelled on the newly opened metro line from Tavarekere to the Indian Institute of Management Bengaluru (IIMB) station. During this, Karnataka Governor Dr. Sudha Yadav, Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, Member of Parliament for Bengaluru South Tejasvi Surya, and other dignitaries were also with him.

A special aspect of the inaugural journey was that both Prime Minister Modi and Chief Minister Shivakumar bought their own metro tickets before boarding. During the ride, metro officials briefed the Prime Minister in detail about the route, its infrastructure, and operational features.

Modi and Shivakumar also symbolically gave the metro train a green flag at the inauguration ceremony. The Prime Minister had invited the Chief Minister to accompany him on the occasion of the inauguration. This journey was part of the inaugural programme, while the metro line will be opened to the public from Saturday.

The 7.5-kilometre elevated section connecting Kalyana Nagar, Tavarekere, and other stations in South Bengaluru will be available to passengers from 6 AM on Saturday. In the initial phase, metro services will be operated on this newly inaugurated section.

With the start of this section, Bengaluru's metro network has crossed 100 kilometres. After the completion of the Pink Line, its total length will be 21.2 kilometres, and it will connect Kalyana Nagar in the south to Nagawara in the north. The remaining 13.7-kilometre underground section between Tavarekere and Nagawara is expected to be completed in the next phase.

Meanwhile, the proposal by the Karnataka government to rename three stations on the newly inaugurated Pink Line has also received approval from the central government. The proposal to rename these stations was put forward in response to demands from local residents. This inauguration took place at a time when increasing traffic congestion has become a major issue in Bengaluru. The expansion of the metro network will provide an additional public transport alternative to passengers in South Bengaluru, and it is hoped that this will facilitate daily commuting. The city has set a target to expand its metro network to approximately 170 kilometres in the next 18 months. Work is also ongoing on the Blue Line, which will be connected to the airport. Senior representatives of the state government also participated in the inauguration ceremony, which was part of the official protocol on the occasion of the Prime Minister's visit. The ceremony was held against the backdrop of ongoing differences between the state and central governments regarding the funding and implementation of metro projects.

There has been a significant expansion in the metro rail network across the country. In 2014, the total length of the metro network in five cities was 248 kilometres, which has now increased to approximately 1,200 kilometres in 26 cities.