Bengaluru, Aug 10: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated new high-speed Vande Bharat Express services and a major metro line in Bengaluru, even as a state leader accused the federal government of underfunding the southern city’s infrastructure.
Modi flagged off three Vande Bharat trains – connecting Bengaluru to Belagavi, Amritsar to Sri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, and Nagpur (Ajni) to Pune – aimed at boosting regional connectivity, cutting travel time and offering “world-class” passenger amenities. He travelled on the Bengaluru–Belagavi service, speaking with schoolchildren on board.
The prime minister also opened the Bangalore Metro Yellow Line from RV Road (Ragigudda) to Bommasandra, part of the city’s Phase-2 expansion. The 19-kilometre stretch, costing 71.6 billion rupees ($858 million), adds 16 stations and extends the operational network to 96 km, expected to serve more than 800,000 commuters in southern Bengaluru. Modi also laid the foundation stone for Phase-3, a 44-kilometre expansion costing 156.1 billion rupees with 31 elevated stations.
With Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in attendance.
However, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar criticised what he called inadequate federal funding for the Yellow Line, saying the Centre contributed only 20% of the cost – and in some cases as little as 11% – while the state covered the rest, including all land acquisition expenses.
“Even though Bengaluru is the country’s second-highest tax-paying city, the grants we receive are minimal,” Shivakumar told reporters. He said Ahmedabad received a 20% share of central support compared with Bengaluru’s 10%, and urged Modi to sanction 1 trillion rupees ($12 billion) for the city’s development.
“Posting on X and appearing in photos is not an achievement,” he said, accusing Karnataka’s BJP MPs of failing to secure funds. “BJP MPs should focus on bringing funds instead of playing politics.”
