The Kanpur Metro project has advanced further as the Afcons-Sam India consortium has launched the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) Vidyarthi toward Kanpur Central.
The TBM is tunnelling from Transport Nagar station to Kanpur Central on Line 1 via Jhakarkati. The Azad TBM is already working on the ‘up-line’ tunnel for the same stretch.
This work is part of the Kanpur Metro’s KNPCC-06 underground package, connecting Nayaganj Station to the Transport Nagar Ramp.
TBM S-639B, named Vidyarthi, is an earth pressure balance machine manufactured by Herrenknecht. Commissioned in January 2024, it is the fourth TBM for Kanpur Metro Phase 1.
Vidyarthi will construct tunnels on the 23.78 km long Line-1, connecting IIT Kanpur to Naubasta.
The KNPCC-06 package includes the design and construction of tunnels via TBM, cut-and-cover tunnels, and an underground ramp from Kanpur Central to Transport Nagar.
It also covers three underground metro stations, Kanpur Central, Jhakarkatti, and Transport Nagar, along with architectural finishes, electrical and mechanical systems, and tunnel ventilation.
The project spans the IIT-Naubasta corridor via the Jhakarkatti bus terminal (Corridor 1).
In June 2024, TBM Vidyarthi completed its first assignment, constructing a 1,250m underground tunnel (down line) between Kanpur Central and Nayaganj Stations.
By November 2024, TBM Vidyarthi finished its second assignment, building a 331m-long tunnel from the ramp near Swadesh Cotton Mills to Transport Nagar Station.
For its third assignment, TBM Vidyarthi is now tunnelling from Transport Nagar Station to Kanpur Central Station via Jhakarkatti.
The Afcons-Sam India consortium won the KNPCC-06 underground package from the Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC).
The Kanpur Metro project, which has a 36-month deadline, involves a 33km long metro rail, with an investment of INR110.76bn ($1.28bn).
