COVID-19 affects tunneling work of Bangalore Metro Rail Project Phase 2

Bengaluru, India (Urban Transport News): Bangalore Metro contractor Larsen & Toubro Limited on this Tuesday started assembling of the parts of tunnel boring machine (TBM) received from Chinese firm China Railway Construction Heavy Industry Corporation Limited (CRCHI) at Bamboo Bazaar near Cantonment railway station. The complete assembling work for tunneling will be completed by the end of April. Due to the spread of COVID-19 across the world badly, the Government of India has banned international journeys between India and affected countries including China. The tunneling work will only be commenced after lifting of the ban on Chinese people flying to India.

Bangalore Metro Phase II: L&T construction commence tunneling work at Cantt Station for building the downline tunnel towards Shivaji Nagar station after started lowering the parts of first TBM Urja (DZ670) on thus Tuesday. This section is part of Line 4 of BMRC's Phase-2 project. pic.twitter.com/jzpOTHmJXK

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After winning the Rs 2,628 crore contract from Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRC) to construct a 6 km long underground section of Line 4 of Phase 2 of Bangalore Metro Rail project, L&T had placed an order to procure 4 Tunnel Boring Machines from the CRCHI. Out of 4, the CRCHI has successfully delivered two TBMs at Bangalore Metro site in February this year after factory acceptance tests at its Changsha plant.

The remaining two TBMs had also completed the factory acceptance tests and will reach Bengaluru soon. Despite the ban, two Chinese engineers still working for CRCHI at Bangalore Metro site, who had helped the contractor L&T construction in assembling the parts of the first TBM namely Urja (DZ670). The parts of another TBM (Avani), which is already parked at Shivajinagar, will be assembled in a few weeks. “The TBMs can be commissioned with the help of a software that requires the expertise of CRCHI, which manufactured the TBM.

One personnel from China was expected to come but the travel has been postponed until the spread of Coronavirus is contained,” a senior BMRCL official said, reported Bangalore Mirror. These first two TBMs will tunnel towards the Vellara junction. BMRC is expecting the remaining two TBMs to arrive from the Chennai port to Bengaluru city shortly. According to the plan. these TBMs will be lowered, one at Shivajinagar and another at Cantonment, to tunnel parallelly.

BMRC Officials said that the two TBMs to be commissioned at Bamboo Bazaar will tunnel towards Shivajinagar. And thereafter, It will be dismantled at Shivajinagar and lowered again at Bamboo Bazaar to tunnel towards Tannery Road. “The plan of tunnelling is a bit behind schedule. We are expecting two more TBMs to reach the city soon. There is a bit of an issue as people from China are unable to come. We need some technical expertise and we will find a way,” said Ajay Seth, Managing Director, BMRCL, reported by Bangalore Mirror.