Kolkata-based Titagarh Rail System Limited (TRSL), tasked with manufacturing driverless trains for the Bengaluru Metro’s Yellow Line, is scheduled to deliver its first train set by the end of this year or early next year. The company was expected to deliver the first train set by August 2024. The 18-km Yellow Line connects RV Road to Bommasandra, Bangalore’s major manufacturing and technology hub, via Electronic City.
Speaking to indianexpress.com, Pritish Choudhary, Deputy Managing Director, Titagarh Rail System said, “The first set of trains to be built TITAGARH RAIL SYSTEM LIMITED is close to completion. Titagarh is focused on dispatching the first localized train set for the Bangalore Metro 4RS-DM project in late December or early January 2025.”
He added, “The trains are currently undergoing rigorous testing at various stations. These trains are built to meet customer requirements and adhere to strict quality standards. This is an important milestone as this will be the first localized stainless steel trainset produced by Titagarh and CRRC for this project. .
Chaudhary said that after the delivery of the first train set, and with the process in place, Titagarh will ramp up production to two train sets per month after the delivery of the first train set.
The first communication based train control system prototype train from China was received by Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited’s Hebbagodi depot on February 14 this year.
However, BMRCL managing director Maheshwar Rao was hopeful of starting operations on the Yellow Line in January 2025 with only three trains, pending the expected delivery of the train sets by the end of December. In October, he said BMRCL expected the first train from Titagarh in the first week of December and the second by the end of December. Later, with three trains, BMRCL hopes to operate the Yellow Line between the second and last weeks of January.
The second set of trains is now expected to be available by the end of December or January 2025 and the third train is set to be phased in, with the Yellow Line operational in the second and last week of January looking doubtful. “We are expecting train sets to be dispatched before the end of the year, as per new information. We expect at least two train sets from TRSL by January end. However, we will get a clear picture only after a review meeting with TRSL on production and delivery of rolling stock,” Rao said on Monday. said
As part of the contract agreement signed with BMRCL in December 2019, Titagarh is responsible for manufacturing 34 of the 36 train sets required for the Yellow Line. Only two train sets with 12 coaches will be built in China. Production began on May 18, 2024, with the first train initially set for delivery in August 2024. However, Titagarh missed the deadline and pushed it to the end of December 2024.
In December 2019, China’s CRRC Nanjing Puzhen Company Limited won a contract to supply 2,016 coaches, which were expected to be delivered within 173 weeks (by May 2022). However, due to supply chain challenges, CRRC struggled to identify a local manufacturer to meet the 75 percent local manufacturing requirement under the Make-in-India initiative.
An 18.82 km metro line connecting RV Road to Bommasandra (Rich 5) has been constructed under the second phase of the Bangalore Metro Rail project at a cost of Rs 5,744 crore. This metro stretch aims to extend connectivity from South Bengaluru to the IT hub of Electronic City, reducing traffic congestion at Resham Board Junction and Hosur Road.
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