Four-storey building to rise at Majestic Metro station on PPP model

Bengaluru: Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) is planning to build four more floors above the Kempegowda Majestic Interchange metro station to generate revenue apart from ticket fares.

The corporation running the 55 km metro line in the city intends to implement the project on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis. Newly constructed spaces are likely to be used for office space, malls, theaters or other commercial purposes. "An agency is entrusted with the task of studying the feasibility of real estate development. Necessary action was taken while constructing a metro interchange station at Majestic to complement the expansion. Majestic being a transport and commercial hub, it is expected to generate good returns," said Anjum Parvez, MD, BMRCL.

The Majestic station is spread over an area of seven acres. More than one lakh people use the station to switch Metro from Green Line to Purple Line. BMRCL is all set to extend the purple line from Baiyappanahalli to Whitefield, which is likely to further increase the demand for the metro. Majestic Station is operational since 2017. Like other metros, Bengaluru's Metro suffered huge losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic. BMRCL earned Rs 420 crore in revenue (including ticket fare and non-ticket revenue) in 2019-20. The revenue had fallen to Rs 86.99 crore in 2020-21 due to non-operation of metro trains. People who rented space in metro stations ran restaurants and other commercial establishments with less crowd. But suffered loss without any business. Many had to close shops. In the last financial year, BMRCL managed to generate revenue of Rs 207 crore due to partial operation of metro trains. Our metro is on the road to recovery as ridership has crossed the 5 lakh mark per day in the current financial year.

BMRCL is exploring possibilities of availing real estate opportunities in various metro stations. "BMRCL is thinking of constructing a multi-storey parking near KR Puram Metro. The space available at Mysore Road Station and other areas is planned to be used for real estate development," said Anjum Parvez.

In 2017, BMRCL gave a long-term lease to Ikea for the available land near Nagasandra Metro Station. Ikea paid a non-refundable fee of Rs 251 crore. Also, BMRCL is earning Rs 2 crore from Ikea. The land is leased for 60 years.