Unlock 4: Metro services to resume from Sept 7

M K Rai
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Unlock 4: Metro services to resume from Sept 7

NEW DELHI (Metro Rail News): The Ministry of Home Affairs has taken a decision to continue unlocking the economy amid the deteriorating conditions of Coronavirus spread. Although the cases continue to spike, the government is in no mood to rethink on its decisions and in the same move, it has issued Unlock 4.0 guidelines.

Although the schools and colleges along with all other educational activities have been kept under lockdown till 30th September, the government has decided to open up the Metro. The move will help Delhi Metro, Noida Metro, Lucknow Metro, Kolkata, Bangalore and Kochi metros to resume their operation. However, there are speculations whether the metro services are going to resume in Mumbai and Nagpur. According to the sources familiar with the matter in Maharashtra, the state government may even not allow the services.

“Metro rail will be allowed to operate with effect from 7th September 2020 in a graded manner, by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA)/ Ministry of Railways (MOR), in consultation with MHA. In this regard, Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) will be issued by MOHUA”, Said the statement released by MHA in evening.

The things may vary from state to state as the state governments will have enough powers to impose localised lockdowns. The move is, however, being welcomed by the Metro Corporations across the nation. The most challenging thing will be the execution of the phase-wise reopening of metro networks.

“As per the latest guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs under Unlock-4, the Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) will be resuming its services on the Aqua Line for the public from 7th September 2020 onwards in a calibrated manner. Further details on the Metro functioning and its usage by the general public will be shared once the detailed SOP on Metros is issued by the Ministery of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and the Uttar Pradesh Government in the next few days” said Ritu Maheshwari, Managing Director of Noida Metro Rail Corporation.

“Metro Rail will be allowed to operate in a graded manner from 7 September 2020 by @MoHUA_India and @RailMinIndia, in consultation with Ministry of Home Affairs. SOP will soon be issued in this regard”, said MoHUA in a tweet.

“As per the latest guidelines, Delhi Metro will be resuming its services for the public from 7 September 2020 onwards in a calibrated manner. Details on the Metro functioning & its usage will be shared once the detailed SOP on Metros is issued by MoHUA”, said DMRC in a statement.

“As part of the nationwide Unlock 4.0, Kochi Metro services to resume operations from 7th September 2020”, said Kochi Metro in Tweet.

Amid the rising number of cases in national capital, it can be a risky game for DMRC as well. The things now depend upon execution of the plans.

Kolkata Metro invites Rs 526 crore bid for New Garia corridor

M K Rai
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1
Kolkata Metro invites Rs 526 crore bid for New Garia corridor

Kolkata (Metro Rail News): The Kolkata Metro has invited a bid worth Rs 526.62 crore for construction of viaduct, ramp & underground RCC box (cut & cover, box pushing) including related works.

The tender has been invited for 3.520 km length from ch. 25891.527 to ch. 29410.989 between existing pier cp-760 (near City Centre-II) to merging point with the metro railway at Biman Bandar station yard including two stations (Rabindra Tirtha & VIP ROAD).

The works also include all allied works like architectural, electrical, mechanical, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, fire detection, fire suppression system & public health engineering works in New Garia Bimanbandar Metro Corridor of Kolkata Metro railway line.

“The bid will help to provide pace to the development of Kolkata Metro, ” an official said.

Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Company renamed as Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation

M K Rai
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Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Company renamed as Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation

Bhopal (Metro Rail News): Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Company Ltd, which has undertaken projects in Bhopal and Indore, has been renamed as Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, an official said on Thursday.

The decision to this effect was taken on Wednesday in a meeting of the company’s board of directors under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the official from the public relations department said.

Earlier, a tripartite pact was signed between the Centre, state government and the metro firm on August 19 in connection with turning the company into a corporation, he said.

“In all other states, the company has been registered as a corporation only and therefore, the same has been done in Madhya Pradesh as well,” said Nitesh Vyas, principal secretary of urban administration and development department.

The chief minister has directed to complete the metro rail projects in Bhopal and Indore in three-four years, the official said.

The board of directors will comprise of five officials. The commissioner (urban development) of Madhya Pradesh will be its managing director, while principal secretaries of finance, revenue, public works and urban development departments will be its directors, he said.

As per the central government’s Metro Rail Act, it is necessary to declare the metro construction area as a metropolitan area.

In this connection, a decision was taken to initiate necessary actions for declaring Indore and Bhopal metro areas as “metropolitan areas”, the official added.

Namma Metro experiences a cash loss of Rs 26 crore

M K Rai
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0
Namma Metro experiences a cash loss of Rs 26 crore

Bangalore (Metro Rail News): The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRC) has suffered a net cash loss of Rs 55 crore in 2019-20 compared to Rs 29 crore the previous year. This is after paying interest on loans of Rs 108 crore in 2019-20.

However, the net accounting loss is pegged at Rs 598 crore during 2019-20 compared to Rs 498 crore in the previous fiscal. This is mainly due to the depreciation charges of Rs 584 crore for Phase 1 assets in 2019-20.

The loss for the current financial year (2020-21) is likely to be much higher since Metro remains shut for 158 days (since March 22). As the service was not operational for only nine days (March 22-31) during 2019-20, the impact was minimal.

The corporation has reported a reduction in non-fare box revenue: Rs 42 crore in 2019-20 compared to Rs 47 crore the previous year. “This is mainly due to loss of revenue owing to the ban on outdoor advertisements and reduction in rental income from property development in March 2020 due to the lockdown,” an official said.

After Forest Dept. notice, DMRC stops Phase-4 work

M K Rai
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After Forest Dept. notice, DMRC stops Phase-4 work

New Delhi (Metro Rail News): The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has stopped the ongoing works on the Janakpuri West-Peeragarhi stretch under Phase-4 after the forest department accused it of violating the Forest Conservation Act, 1980.

“We have stopped work on the Janakpuri West – Peeragarhi stretch and will resume work after all mandatory approvals are met,” Anuj Dayal, Executive Director (Corporate Communications), DMRC, was reported saying.

According to the Deputy Conservator of Forests, West Division, the DMRC did not have requisite permissions to undertake work on a 5.34-km stretch of Road Number 26 between Vikas Puri and Peeragarhi Chowk and a 1,300-meter square portion of the Najafgarh drain, which are deemed forest areas.

Multiple notices were issued in February and August, asking the DMRC “not to carry out any construction work on the portion of Road Number 26 and Najafgarh drain”, according to the forest department.

The forest department had filed a violation report with the Union Environment Ministry, alleging severe damage to trees due to the DMRC work at the two locations. It has also filed complaints at Vikas Puri and Mianwali police stations regarding the matter.

However, the DMRC claimed that “the issue of deemed forest came up only in August” and the same was never pointed out by the forest department in any of the visits conducted.

“The location of the same (deemed forest) is also not established through any authenticated record. It is being established through Google Earth images only, wherein the exact location of the 5.34 kilometres is not known. It may be outside the DMRC alignment as well,” it said.

The DMRC said it would be happy to cooperate if there is further clarity on this issue.

With a new way to impose Social Distancing, Kochi Metro prepares to reopen

M K Rai
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0
With a new way to impose Social Distancing, Kochi Metro prepares to reopen

Kochi (Metro Rail News): Kochi Metro Rail Limited is gearing up for the resumption of metro services as the Ministry of Home Affairs is yet to take a decision on the matter. “The KMRL is taking strict measures with regard to the sanitisation, social distancing for passengers and for cashless transactions once the metro resumes operations”, a statement said.

Kochi Metro is awaiting permission from the central government to restart the operations.  Kochi Metro will encourage passengers to use Kochi1 card rather than cash transactions. Necessary preventive measures have been taken to adopt contactless ticketing and its digital payment at all stations. 

“Kochi Metro has decided to set up cash boxes and contactless ticket machines at each station in an attempt to prevent the spread of COVID 19.  The cash boxes will help in checking the spread of virus if any through the currency notes. If a non Kochi1 card user is entering the station he/she needs to purchase a ticket to travel. The new system will ensure that a commuter will not touch anything except the ticket”, the Managing Director of KMRL Mr. Alkesh Kumar Sharma said.

The metro officials at the ticket counter and passenger information counter will communicate to the passengers through the mic and speaker only. All the staff dealing with cash will wear hand gloves.

“The metro officials will encourage passengers to use hand sanitizer at entry points of stations. Foot pedal operated hand sanitisers will be kept at all entry points of stations.  Social distancing of passengers at stations will be monitored by respective station controllers through CCTV. Security controllers available at the security control room will also monitor social distancing through CCTV”, the statement said. 

“All passengers will be screened for body temperature through an infrared thermometer by Security staff. In addition, thermal cameras will be placed at stations having high footfall.  All public contact points like AFC gates, ticket counters, handrails of staircase, escalators, lift buttons, platform chairs will be cleaned with disinfectant every 4 hours”, said Mr. Sharma.

Mumbai: CSMT, Church Gate railway stations to get automated control gates

M K Rai
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Mumbai: CSMT, Church Gate railway stations to get automated control gates

Mumbai (Metro Rail News): The Railways is starting a pilot project to reduce overcrowding in suburban railway stations. In the same move, Central and Western Railway will be introducing automated control gates on two railway stations in Mumbai.

The gates will be introduced in September at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Churchgate railway stations. The gates will be operated with the help of QR codes that will be given to essential services workers who are currently travelling by local trains.

This move comes as both the Central and Western Railway are working on methods to introduce social distancing inside the train compartments. Wearing of facial masks could also become compulsory inside the compartments.

“Access control is very crucial in the current situation. The control gates will be introduced as a pilot project. We will attempt to use QR code-based passes to access the gate.
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If successful, it will be introduced in other suburban railway stations,” said GVL Satyakumar, divisional railway manager, Western Railway.

Railway officials said introduction of these gates would be helpful during limited operation of train services. “Implementation of controlled gates is possible now when there are less trains operating with low crowds. The study will further help determine how access control can be implemented once train services resume,” a railway official said.

Transport experts have suggested the implementation of access control along with capacity reduction in trains, screening of passengers, location mapping of passengers as solutions for the resumption of local train services in the city.

Blue Star Bags Rs 149 crore order for Mumbai Metro Line 3

M K Rai
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Blue Star Bags Rs 149 crore order for Mumbai Metro Line 3

Mumbai ( Metro Rail News ) – Air conditioning and commercial refrigeration giant Blue star has said that it has bagged an order worth Rs 149 crore for Mumbai Metro 3 from Dogus-Soma JV.

The order is for electrical and mechanical works in five underground stations, tunnels, cross overs, cross passages and auxiliary buildings of Mumbai Metro Line III, Blue Star said in a regulatory filing.

The five underground stations for which the order has been received are Mahalaxmi, Mumbai Central, Science Museum, Acharya Atre Chowk, and Worli.

The scope of the order comprises design verification, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of electrical and mechanical works including lighting control and protection systems, advanced fire detection and fire-fighting systems, plumbing systems, the filing said.

Dogus-Soma JV was awarded the ‘Mumbai Metro Line III, Package-UGC-03’ project by Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRCL). B Thiagarajan, Managing Director, Blue Star said this is the second significant order won by Blue Star for Mumbai Metro. 

“We are currently executing the prestigious Mumbai Metro project for Air Conditioning and Tunnel Ventilation System of nine underground stations and associated tunnels on Line 3 corridor between Mumbai Central and Bandra,” an official said.

Union minister Balyan requests for including Muzaffarnagar in the Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor

M K Rai
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New Delhi (Metro Rail News): Union minister of state for animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries, Sanjeev Balyan has again raised the demand for extension of the proposed Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor from Meerut to Muzaffarnagar while claiming that his repeated requests to the UP government in this regard have gone unheeded. 

“I have sent at least 15 reminders and letters to the UP government in the past one year to include Muzaffarnagar in the corridor but there has been no positive response,” Balyan was reported saying.

The  BJP MP from Muzaffarnagar said he recently raised the issue in a meeting with officials of Union housing and urban affairs ministry on July 30. “I told  Hardeep Singh Puri, that a proposed RRTS station — Daurala — in Meerut is just 40 km from Muzaffarnagar. If the corridor passed through Muzaffarnagar, it would also provide better connectivity to pilgrims to two holy cities of Haridwar and Shukratal,” the minister said.
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According to the ministerPanipat and Muzaffarnagar are now included in the national capital region (NCR) and a project like RRTS would provide better connectivity to the national capital for these regions, allowing government and private sector employees to frequently travel from these townships to Ghaziabad and Delhi. 

Indian Railways Introduces Rail Bicycle for Easy Track Inspections

M K Rai
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Indian Railways Introduces Rail Bicycle for Easy Track Inspections

New Delhi (Metro Rail News): Indian Railways has introduced an innovative rail bicycle which will help its staff in daily inspection, monitoring and track repair, ECoR said in a statement here on Tuesday. These rail bicycles will run on railway tracks at an average speed of 10 kmph.
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They have been manufactured in-house by Permanent Way (P-Way) unit of East Coast Railway’s Khurda Road division by using damaged rail dolly wheels for balancing the cycle, the statement said. These bicycles move at a maximum speed of 15 kmph and can be easily lifted as they weigh only 30 kg. They can also be dismantled and assembled by one person.

The introduction of the railway bicycles will help trackmen in inspecting and monitoring the tracks especially during monsoons. The trackmen are required to carry out their duties at present on foot round the year at all times of the day, the statement said.

After a heavy shower, the bridge approach and other vulnerable locations can be easily inspected by the staff in a short span of time with the help of rail bicycle. Unwanted detentions during monsoons can also be avoided by using them.

“The railway cycles will be very helpful for patrolling during summers too. The rail bicycles can also be used for patrolling to ensure safety and security in sections of the railway division currently closed to traffic due to the COVID-19 pandemic”, the statement said.

Indian Railways aims for zero carbon emission by 2030

Narendra Shah
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Indian Railways aims for zero carbon emission by 2030

New Delhi ( Metro Rail News ) – Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has said that the Indian Railways has set a target of reducing carbon emission to zero by the end of 2030.

“By 2030 we will be a net-zero railway, our carbon emission will be zero. Indian Railways transports nearly 8 billion passengers and 1.2 billion tonnes of freight every year. Ours will be the world’s first railways of this scale to go green,” Goyal tweeted.

As per the government data, the rail network in India is the fourth largest in the world only after the US, Russia and China. Indian rail network covers 67,368 km of tracks and has 7,300 stations.
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Government’s think tank NITI Aayog had said in a report that carbon emission from the Indian Railways was 6.84 million tonnes in 2014.

“We will have 100 per cent electrified train network by December 2023, the first railway of this scale in the world which will be diesel-free, 100 per cent electric,” Goyal said.

The Union Minister added that land along the tracks will b used by Indian Railways to general 20 gigawatt of clean energy. He noted that the solar power equipment used for this purpose will be manufactured in India.

Indian Railways to connect Chardham through 327 KM long Rail link

M K Rai
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Indian Railways to connect Chardham through 327 KM long Rail link

New Delhi (Metro Rail News): The Indian Railways is set to construct a railway line of 327 kilometres, connecting the Char Dham of Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath, and Kedarnath via Dehradun and Karanprayag in Uttarakhand. It will make it an easy and comfortable journey for crores of devotees in future.

As per details shared by Railways Minister Piyush Goyal, the 327 km long rail line will pass through Dehradun, Pauri, Tehri Garhwal, Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Uttarkashi. The Ministry of Railways has said that Indian Railways will have to face challenges such as the limits of capacity, load, speed, and safety as all the four dhams are elevated at different levels.

According to the Railway Ministry, the Yamunotri tracing the origin of Yamuna is located at 3,293 metres above Mean Sea Level, the Gangotri tracing the origin of Ganga is situated at 3,408 metres Mean Sea Level, Kedarnath is located at 3,583 metres Mean Sea Level while Badrinath is located at 3,133 metres above Mean Sea Level.

Once the project is completed, the journey to Chardham will become easier for the devotees and would bring in development opportunities in Uttarakhand.

It’s time for resumption of Metros across the nation

M K Rai
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0
It’s time for resumption of Metros across the nation

New Delhi (Metro Rail News): The things have not much changed as far as Corona spread is concerned. The conditions have much deteriorated, and it continues. However, it has now become clear that the pandemic will not be over soon, and people now need to make adjustments in their lives according to the needs of the time. The economy has been affected much and will take a long time for a revival.

The pandemic which is being taken as a Made in China initiative, it has hampered the world economy with causing least impacts on China. In India, the pandemic has created huge loss both of lives and wealth.

As the lockdown restrictions are being eased up, most parts of the Indian economy are now open. However, the most crucial component of the economy, which helps easy transportation of goods and People has been affected much. The Public transport systems whether it be Railways, Metros, Local trains or Sub Urban Services, everything has not resumed yet.

As the workplaces have been opened up and people need to reach to their factories or offices on time, the lack of availability of effective public transport services is creating Havoc. Once the government planned to open up office spaces and companies, it was needed to restart metro services to ease the travel. Many people have been complaining that it is taking much of their salaries to travel through cabs or auto rickshaws. The need of the time is to address the genuine concerns of the people to help further the economy to gain faster recovery.

Meanwhile, the different Metro Authorities have started preparing. We provide here with a list of such Metro Agencies which are working to resume metro services while waiting for the Government nod.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation ( DMRC ) 

The DMRC is the nodal agency for running metro in the Capital City of India. The DMRC network is the biggest of that of South Asia, and it is believed to be the mother organization of all the other metro establishments of the nation.

Recently, the DMRC made a collaboration with Autope to bring more effective and contactless ticketing system. “The Autope Smart Card with Auto recharge option comes handy at these times wherein, commuters are going to follow a new travel protocol (whenever Metro services resume) which calls for social distancing and contactless services due to the ongoing COVID pandemic. However, irrespective of the new card/feature, the existing Smart Cards owned by the commuters will continue to remain valid in the same manner as they used to be so far”, the DMRC said in a statement.

Kochi Metro

Running in one of the Southernmost parts of the country, the Kochi Metro has geared up for the resumption of its services. In a move to serve the passengers, the Kochi Metro has decided to run trains every 20 minutes. Operations will resume at 7 am and end around 8:30.

“We have plans to increase the number of trains based on the passenger footfall. Kochi Metro has taken all steps to provide a safe and secure travel for all Kochiites.” said Alkesh Kumar Sharma IAS, Additional Chief Secretary and MD KMRL.

Lucknow metro

The UPMRC, nodal agency for running Lucknow metro has come up with many new plans. Regular sanitization, along with the implementation of new technologies are a few major things which the corporation is doing.

“Keeping in mind, the health and safety of its commuters, UPMRC will ensure that all station premises, equipment and other points of contact are being sanitized at regular intervals of 4-5 hours. This including the ticket counters (TOMs), TVM (Ticket Vending Machines), Customer Care centres, Entry-Exit gates, handrails inside trains, handrails at the escalator and seats of trains, platforms etc.”, UPMRC said to Metro Rail News.

Nagpur Metro

The Managing Director of Maha Metro, Dr Brajesh Dixit recently visited Rahate Colony and Ajani Metro stations of Orange line of Nagpur Metro. He reviewed the preparations on the stations and further gave instructions to officials available there.

According to sources, the Nagpur Metro too is in working mode and may resume services once the centre gives a green signal.

Bangaluru Metro

As it is expecting to resume after Home Ministry nod, the preparations are final. It has experienced a huge loss both of fare and non-fare revenues.

The metro authorities are also experiencing huge revenue losses, and they are requesting the Central Government to let them run with limited passengers.

The ball is now in the court of MHA which is expected to take a final call on the matter today.

ISGEC Engineering bags contract of Joka metro depot work

M K Rai
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ISGEC Engineering bags contract of Joka metro depot work

Kolkata (Metro Rail News): Joka-Esplanade Metro project, the letter of award for the Joka Metro depot has been issued to ISGEC Heavy Engineering Limited that emerged as the lowest bidder after a thorough technical evaluation. Significantly, Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), the executing agency for the project, carried out the entire process online during the lockdown. The awarding of the contract for such a big project has been executed in a record duration of time.

Financial (price) bids were opened on August 22 in which ISGEC emerged as the lowest bidder.

FirmBid
ISGEC Heavy Engineering Ltd.Rs. 350.89 crore
URC – Taikisha JVRs. 352.77 crore
Power Mech Projects Ltd. – HYT JVRs. 358.48 crore
Shapoorji Pallonji and Company Pvt. Ltd.Rs. 360.58 crore
SMS India Pvt Ltd.Disqualified
KEC International Ltd.Disqualified
Engineering Projects (India) Ltd.Disqualified

Seven bidders had participated in the bidding process while four were chosen for the technical bid. The Noida-based ISGEC won the contract for the project that holds the key to truncated Metro operation from Joka to Taratala in 2021. The construction of the entire elevated Metro corridor has been completed till Taratala. ISGEC will have to finish the depot work within two years, said an RVNL officer. 

The land acquisition issue of the Joka depot had derailed the project, with villagers of five moujas refusing to part with their land at the price announced under Metro Rail Act. The state government intervened and announced viability gap funding to make the compensation attractive as per with the prevailing market price. Till now, RVNL has acquired nearly 90% of the depot land and work seems to be progressing fast.

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