The dispute over Namma Metro funding has intensified after Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya challenged Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda’s account of the Centre’s contribution to the city’s metro expansion. Surya said the Centre and Karnataka each hold a 50% equity share in Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL), while loans backed by a Central government guarantee are being used to finance further projects.
Surya made the clarification at a press conference after Byre Gowda said stronger Central participation was needed to accelerate metro expansion and improve public transport connectivity in Bengaluru. Byre Gowda had described sustained investment in the metro network as essential to the city’s sustainable development and to providing more accessible and efficient transport to residents.
According to the figures cited by Surya, the Centre has provided Rs 9,164 crore to BMRCL as equity, with the Karnataka government contributing an equivalent amount. He said other metro projects are being completed through international loans for which the Centre provides a guarantee, while repayment responsibility rests with BMRCL.
Surya disputed the claim that Karnataka is bearing the overwhelming share of the overall cost of the metro network up to Phase 3. Byre Gowda’s account placed the total cost at Rs 77,891 crore, including Rs 65,291 crore attributed to Karnataka and Rs 12,600 crore to the Centre. Surya argued that the calculation includes around Rs 28,000 crore in loans guaranteed by the Centre and therefore should not be shown entirely as the state government’s contribution.
The disagreement centres on how project financing is classified. Surya said the state’s direct responsibilities under the metro memorandum of understanding include land acquisition, rehabilitation and taxes. He added that this arrangement is followed for metro projects across the country and that the cost of land acquisition is generally borne by the state government in railway, national highway and metro projects.
Surya further claimed that the Centre’s share in the three phases of the metro project had increased progressively, reaching 57% by Phase 3. He accused the Chief Minister and the Bengaluru Development Minister of presenting the funding figures in a way that could mislead the public. These statements were part of Surya’s response and were not independently verified in the supplied report.
The MP also linked the funding dispute to the state’s ability to raise loans, citing alleged pending payments to the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation and Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, as well as pension-related concerns. He said BMRCL, rather than the state government, is responsible for repaying the loans raised for metro expansion.
The competing claims leave the immediate issue as one of accounting and institutional responsibility: whether Central-guaranteed borrowing should be recorded as part of Karnataka’s contribution or treated separately from the state’s direct project spending. The supplied report does not include a fresh statement from BMRCL, the Union government or the Karnataka government resolving that classification.
