MahaMetro launches excavation on Swargate-Mandai metro line
The Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MahaMetro) has recently pressed a tunnel-boring machine (TBM) into service to dig the second tunnel from Swargate towards Mandai. Sources informed that the TBM was assembled over the past few days and began excavation after running preliminary trials and no reports of damage to over-ground structures during the tunnel work have been received so far. The tunnel is being dug 18 metres underground; other tunnels on the stretch range from 18 to 25 metres underground. The tunneling work in the Civil Court-Swargate section was delicate as the route was aligned through the old city areas - home to many old buildings and other structures, informed GM (PR), MahaMetro, Hemant Sonawane. He added that two parallel tunnels are coming up in the underground stretch between Swargate and the depot at the College of Agriculture in Shivajinagar. The excavation of the first tunnel has progressed beyond Mandai; and tunneling till Kasba Peth is likely to be completed over the next month. Three TBMs have been deployed for the excavation work whereby two are excavating from Swargate towards Kasba Peth, while the third has reached the Kasba Peth station site from the Civil Court end. MahaMetro plans to extract the machines from the Kasba Peth duct for which a detailed plan is being chalked out as the agency has also initiated other works, such as laying of cables and track-related work, in the sections where the tunnel is ready, and a stabling tunnel is also coming up at the Swargate end to enable parking of the rakes.
