JAIPUR (Metro Rail News): Metro stations in the city may soon be named after big brands or companies. On the lines of big cities, including Delhi, Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation (JMRC) has planned to give branding and ‘semi-naming in rights’ to companies whose name may appear as a prefix to a station’s name. JMRC has floated a tender to give the rights for Mansarovar station on corridor Phase I.
“Auctioning of semi-naming and branding rights at the station would generate non-fare revenue for the corporation. The technical bid will be opened on December 19,” a JMRC official said.
In other cities such as Delhi, Chennai apart from generating direct revenue through auctioning of naming rights, the corporation has received added benefits. Explaining the concept, an official said, at stations, the undertakings that have bought the naming right, also do the branding of the stations with colors associated with the respective companies, an official said.
He said this adds to the aesthetic value of the station. Also, with the company maintaining the exterior of the stations, JMRC will not have to worry about maintaining it.
To make the project viable, the JMRC is making desperate attempts to increase the non-fare revenue. As per the (JMRC) assessment, the project is staring at an annual operating loss of Rs 41 crore for the next five years. The loss is calculated at 60% of the ridership. The amount will rise up to Rs 71 crore a year if the loss is calculated at 20% ridership.
As phase IB corridor is delayed and no earning has started yet it would be also a challenge to repay the Rs 969-crore loan taken from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The state government’s installment will start in June 2021.
Sources added, “The route is very short and not feasible. Serious efforts are required to bridge the gap between operational cost and expenses”.
