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Work on underground stretch of Kanpur Metro begins, first TBM lowered
The launching shaft was lowered after a traditional ceremony at the construction site in the presence of senior officials of Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) and contracting agency.
The first Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) segment for Kanpur metro was lowered in the launching shaft constructed at Bada Chauraha on Sunday.
The launching shaft was lowered after a traditional ceremony at the construction site in the presence of senior officials of Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) and contracting agency.
Officials said that the UPMRC is trying to start the construction of the tunnel either by month end or latest by first week of July. “The TBM selected for the tunneling is a state-of-the-art machine designed for the geological condition of Kanpur,” said MD UPMRC Kumar Keshav.
“Two TBM machines will be launched from the launching shaft at Bada Chauraha, which will construct the tunnels in the direction of Nayaganj. Extensive instrumentation will be done throughout the underground stretch and continuous online and real time monitoring will be done by a team of dedicated experts to ensure safety during TBM operation,” he added.
“TBM shall be retrieved at Phoolbagh-Nayaganj station after building a tunnel of 990m. The tunnel between Bada Chauraha and Phoolbagh-Nayaganj metro stations would be completed in approximately six months. After the retrieval, both machines will be re-launched from the shaft to be built at Chunniganj and the tunnels will be constructed through Naveen Market up to Bada Chauraha,” said Keshav.
“This is a wonderful moment that has brought pride to the whole team of UPMRC. Executing such difficult work in a congested and busy area of Kanpur City in quick time is a record in itself,” he added.
Presently, passenger services of Kanpur Metro are operational on the 9-km-long priority section (IIT- Motijheel). Under the 23-km-long Corridor-I (IIT-Naubasta), beyond Motijheel Metro Station, the underground stretch of the corridor was being constructed in two phases. The first phase comprises of Chunniganj, Naveen Market, Bada Chauraha & Nayaganj metro stations, the second phase comprises of Kanpur Central, Jhakarkati, and Transport Nagar metro stations. After this 7-km-long underground section, around 5-km-long sections between Baradevi and Naubasta will be elevated.
