Soon, Travel To Dubai From Mumbai In High-Speed Underwater Train

Narendra Shah
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Soon, Travel To Dubai From Mumbai In High-Speed Underwater Train

After driverless flying cars and Hyperloop, the UAE has come up with yet another fanciful mode of transport — an underwater rail network which will be its joint venture with India.

As per a report in Khaleej Times, National Advisor Bureau Limited managing director and chief consultant, Abdulla Alshehhi announced that the underwater rail network will become a reality soon. “This is a concept. We plan to connect Indian city of Mumbai with Fujairah through ultra-speed floating trains. The project aims to boost bilateral trade,” he said.

Alshehhi further added, “There will be an export of oil to India from Fujairah port and import of excess water from Narmada River, north of Mumbai. In addition, other GCC partners can also improve export and import.”

Alshehhi also said that they will do a feasibility study of the project and finds the infrastructure concept a ‘cool’ project to develop. It will not only benefit the UAE and India but the near-by region as well. The total rail network will be less than 2000 km.

Globally, there are many similar projects in the pipeline. China has plans to connect Russia, Canada, and the US via high-speed train. In India, Mumbai and Ahmedabad will also be connected by high-speed rail corridor by 2022. A section of the high-speed rail corridor will also go underwater.

Floating trains or ‘Maglev’ use magnet repulsion system to go the ‘train’ at an excellent speed benefiting from having less friction. The high-speed Maglevs trains are under operations in China and Japan currently, but several countries like Australia, US, UK and israel have plans to introduce the rail system.

Bombay High Court Permits Mumbai Metro 3 tunnelling under two fire temples

Narendra Shah
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Bombay High Court Permits Mumbai Metro 3 tunnelling under two fire temples

Mumbai, Metro Rail News: The Bombay high court allowed tunneling under consecrated
premises of two heritage Atash Behrams—highest grade fire temples—for Mumbai Metro 3 with strict monitoring of work to ensure that no damage is caused to the structures. Continuous monitoring and necessary precautions will need to be taken with scientific experts’ guidance said the HC on Friday.

The court dismissed a petition filed against the tunnelling work. The HC also vacated the stay that had been granted in May and which had continued since. Pleas by senior counsel Navroz Seervai for a two week stay to enable an appeal before the Supreme Court was opposed by MMRCL counsel S G Aney who said Rs 4 crore is the loss faced daily for halted work as the TBM machine is on hold.

The HC vacated the existing stay and declined to stay its order, thus allowing MMRCL to even start with the tunnelling work as soon as the judgment becomes available.
The HC bench of Chief Justice Naresh Patil and Justice R G Karnik gave separate reasons in the concurrent verdict which has come as a blow to the Parsis who had filed the petition and a large number of people from the community who were supporting the petition.

The HC appeared to accept an expert panel report submitted by VJTI college which had recommended that tunnelling is permitted with certain safeguards to ensure no damage is caused to the temples or well water.

The HC too said on Friday that there should be monitoring of well water levels during the tunnelling and underground metro construction work. Outside the Courtroom, leading petitioner Jamshed Sukhadwala expressed his sadness and disappointment at the ruling and lack of stay. Another petitioner Ratan Patel also said that at least a week’s stay could have been given. Both of them and their lawyer Zerick Dastur said that they would consider going in appeal once they peruse the judgment.

The ruling runs into hundreds of pages and is not yet made available. The petition was by structural engineer Sukhadwala and other prominent Parsis including a priest and a lawyer seeking realignment of the Metro-3 to avoid going under the two heritage Zoroastrian Atash Behrams, in the island city, one of which is 188 years old, the other 122. The station near the fire temples would be the Kalbadevi metro station in the 45 km Colaba-Bandra-Seepz underground metro 3 route.

The lengthy hearing in the matter had concluded well before Diwali vacations. “Rights of public are larger than rights of a community,” senior counsel Aney appearing for Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL) had argued. He had also said that the fundamental right of Parsis to practice religion was not being breached by the underground Metro-3 line. The HC appears to have accepted that.

Aney is the former Maharashtra advocate general. The MMRCL said notification regarding the alignment had been issued. Fredun Devitre, counsel for Atash Behram trustees, had argued that “The court will have to balance the scales…’’ adding, “A perfectly good alignment can be technically tweaked, if feasible.’’ Aney had said that rights of public who commute to work in Mumbai also has to be taken into account. “In this city if you can’t transport from one end of the city to another, you cannot live. Is it not a part of right to life?’’ he asked. Aney said, “no fundamental right of Parsis is breached. It is not a case of Article 25 the right to freely practice, profess and propagate religion—being breached.’’

The Parsis had through counsel Navroz Seervai argued at length that their right under Article 25 would be breached if Metro line is allowed to go under the Atash Behrams which house the highest grade fires, the only two of eight such in India. Aney, however, had cited a series of Supreme Court judgments to argue that “the proper approach would require balancing the rights of petitioners against rights of rest of the citizens.’’ He said several Constitutional rights have to be considered, not just one. He said, “Citizens have access to benefits as also to live a life of dignity, work in the comfortable environment and partake in
the wealth of the city.

The state has a constitutional obligation to ensure the citizen is not deprived of these benefits and conveniences.” Aney called for applying the ‘doctrine of proportionality’’ to aid the “exercise of balancing seemingly conflicting rights.

Lucknow Metro | LMRC removing barricades to make way for traffic from December 31

Narendra Shah
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0
Lucknow Metro | LMRC removing barricades to make way for traffic from December 31

Lucknow, Metro Rail News: The Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) has set 31 December 2018 deadline for removing all the barricading on roads on NorthSouth corridor from Chaudhary Charan Singh Airport to Munshipulia where construction work is currently underway.

When Metro Rail News took stock of the situation, it was found that Metro construction work is still in progress from Badshahnagar to Munshipulia.

According to Times of India report, The construction of Lekhraj market, RS Mishra Nagar and Indira Nagar stations on the route are going on. Commuters say that the barricading by LMRC is the main cause of traffic snarls in the area. “Every day I have to travel from Badshahnagar to Indiranagar for tuition classes. The barricades cover a lot of area on road and are the main reason for traffic jams on the stretch.”

Public relation officer of LMRC Amit Kumar Shrivastava said, “We aim to complete the civic construction from the airport to Munshipulia by December 31. We are aware that these barricades cover a lot of area on roads and cause problems to commuters and have
hence doubled the pace of work.”

“After completing the construction of phase-1, we will start the tendering process for the construction of phase-2 (Charbagh to Vasantkunj),” Shrivastava said.

LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot Yesterday

LMRC (Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation) organized a blood donation camp in association with HDFC Bank Ltd. and SGPGI of medical sciences, Lucknow at Transport Nagar Metro Depot today. Shri Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, LMRC first donated blood followed by Directors and other employees of Lucknow Metro. This camp was organized from 10 am onwards and continued till 3 pm in Transport Nagar Metro Depot.

Shri Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, LMRC inaugurated the blood donation camp by cutting the ribbon of blood donation mobile van. Speaking on this occasion he addressed LMRC’s employees,” Your blood contribution is quite vital and will definitely help in saving many precious lives in an emergency. We should try our level best to support this noble cause for the betterment of our society.” It is an initiative of LMRC to sensitize and mobilize its staff to donate their blood voluntarily.

LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot
PIC 1- LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot

LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot
PIC-2 LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot

LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot
PIC -3 LMRC in Collaboration With HDFC Bank Organised A Blood Donation Camp At Transport Nagar Metro Depot

HDFC has been organizing such blood donation drives for the past 12 years since 2007. This is the first time they have collaborated with LMRC as a part of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). A team of 3 doctors along with their medical staff from Transfusion Medicine Department of SGPGI collected blood units in mobile van stationed in the Metro Depot. All the volunteer donors were presented with blood donation cards, donor certificates and a complimentary gift for being part of this noble cause. The blood donation card presented to donors can be used for accessing blood in an emergency situation for themselves and their families within 3 months.

It was a golden opportunity for the employees of LMRC to step in to save the lives of others by contributing for this noble cause in every possible way they could and this blood donation initiative turned out to be a great success overall. LMRC will look forward to organizing and actively participate in similar blood donation camps in future with same vigor and enthusiasm.

Hyderabad Metro begins trials on Ameerpet-Hitec City

Narendra Shah
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Hyderabad Metro begins trials on Ameerpet-Hitec City

Hyderabad, Metro Rail News: On the occasion of the first anniversary of the L&T Metro train operations. The trial run of the Metro train between Ameerpet and Hi-tec City began here Thursday. A team of technical experts and engineers led by managing director of HMRL NVS Reddy and managing director of L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited K V B Reddy travelled on the Metro train on the 10-km stretch and observed critical parameters and performance of the train during the trial run, the release said.

The stretch of Ameerpet and Hi-Tec City has eight stations. The stretch between Ameerpet and Hi-Tec City is of 10 km viz., Madhura Nagar (Taruni), Yousufguda, Jubilee Hills Road No.5, Jubilee Hills Check Post, Peddammagudi, Madhapur, Durgam Cheruvu and Hi-Tec City.

The Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited and L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited have overcome technical challenges owing to sharp curves and gradients, and also land acquisition problems, an official press release said. HMRL and L&TMRHL have achieved a major milestone in providing the eagerly waited for Metro Rail access to the Hitec City area.

The train reversal facility beyond Hi-tec city station up to Trident Hotel would take a few more months for completion, the release said adding that a solution has been found and trains would be run on the ‘twin single-line method’. Under this method, the release said,

A double-line railway track functions as two separate single-lines wherein each line works as an independent single-line and trains are operated in both up and down directions on the same line as if these are two independent single lines.

This method, used by many railways around the world, including Indian Railways, would be followed till train reversal facility beyond Hi-Tec City Metro Station is completed, the release said. Both conventional railway signaling system and the sophisticated communication-based train control system of Hyderabad Metro permit this type of twin single-line train
operations, it said.

Hyderabad metro rail celebrates its first anniversary

Narendra Shah
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Hyderabad metro rail celebrates its first anniversary

Hyderabad, Metro Rail News: Celebrating its first anniversary, L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Ltd Managing Director KVB Reddy unveiled the first anniversary logo and travelled along with children from Aadarana, a home for orphaned and needy students, in a joyride. Over 32 million passengers have used the metro over the past 364 days since Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated last year.

L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Ltd Managing Director KVB Reddy unveiled the first anniversary logo and travelled along with children from Aadarana, a home for orphaned and needy students, in a joyride.
L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Ltd Managing Director KVB Reddy unveiled the first anniversary logo and travelled along with children from Aadarana, a home for orphaned and needy students, in a joyride.

The project highlights thus far include completion of Corridor I of 29 km–Red Line, from Miyapur to LB Nagar covering 27 stations and Corridor 3 of 17 km – Blue Line – Nagole to Ameerpet covering 14 stations.

The line connecting the IT hub of Hitec City is at the advanced stage of completion.

Reddy said, “Hyderabad Metro Rail Project is a unique example of a successful PPP model in public transport in India. It has made a significant impact on the commuting behavior of the people in Hyderabad.”

On Hyderabad metro first anniversary, L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Ltd Managing Director KVB Reddy commenced trial runs on Ameerpet – Hitec city stretch today!

The metro has introduced various Last Mile Connectivity options including electric vehicles, rent a bike service, rent a bicycle service, cab aggregator service, and bus service at Metro stations.

 

Bengaluru Metro | Namma Metro Needs Rs 664 crore more to clear phase-I bills

Narendra Shah
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0
Bengaluru Metro | Namma Metro Needs Rs 664 crore more to clear phase-I bills

Bengaluru, Metro Rail News: Almost one-and-a-half years after the project was opened, it turns out that BMRCL has to raise Rs 664.83 crore more for it. The phase I of Namma Metro is up and running, and has even achieved operational break, but the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation is yet to clear its bills.

As per the annual report of 2017-18, BMRCL had raised a senior term debt of only Rs 5,046 crore as against the approved amount of Rs 5,689 crore from the multilateral funding agencies for Phase I.

Due to the reduction in Japan International Cooperation Agency’s (JICA) loan from Rs 3,689 crore to Rs 3,208 crore. The central government had restricted JICA’s loan amount, apparently due to disagreements over repaying the loan based on fluctuating exchange rates.

“We have enough funds as both the governments — based on our requirements — release money three months in advance. There is no point in raising the money and keeping it unutilized. We may have to raise funds in future,”  said Ajay Seth, managing director at BMRCL, the company would not raise fresh funds anytime soon.

At the present time, the BMRCL is using the funds of Phase II to settle the bills of Phase I, it’s learnt. “There are many cases of arbitration going on. If some of it goes against the company, we may have to raise a fresh loan,” a senior BMRCL official said. Besides, he said, the company only makes a partial payment to contractors in a huge project like the Metro. “The final bill is settled only after the defect liability period is over. The necessity of raising funds would arise later,” he said.

COST OF PHASE I 

Of the total project cost of Phase I (Rs 13,815 crore), the central and state governments together contributed Rs 8,134 crore as equity and subordinated debt. The 42-km network, consisting of a 10-km underground stretch, was thrown open to public use in July 2017.

The remaining Rs 5,046 crore was raised as senior-term debt from international agencies, including JICA (Rs 3,208 crore), Agence Francaise Development (Rs 873 crore) and Housing and Urban Development Corporation (Rs 446 crore). For Phase II, BMRCL has a target of raising Rs 12,100 crore, of which about Rs 7,500 has already been raised.

While the BMRCL has been able to meet operational break-even levels, the company is staring at a huge outstanding loan. The transport utility, which achieved an operational surplus of Rs 73 crore, was able to pay off the interest to some extent. In the 2018-19 financial year, the interest could accumulate to over Rs 100 crore, it is learned.

Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) has released its 2017-18 annual report online Click here to read.

Opinion: System Assurance & RAMS

Dr. Ajeet Kumar Pandey
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Opinion: System Assurance & RAMS

In the present scenario of global competition RAMS ( Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety) Engineering plays a vital role in design, maintenance, safety/security and management of engineering systems. Reliability is considered one of the most important performance assessment index for most of the industrial products, processes and services. It focuses on systematic study and analysis of failures and developing methods for eliminating them or at least minimizing their occurrence with minimum damage to system and environment. It is truly interdisciplinary in nature since failures are not limited to any particular types of engineering systems, processes and services. It is in effect a specialization sought by all engineering practitioners and researchers.

In Railways, the RAMS  Engineering and Management can be applied to all Railway Systems and plays an important role at different stages of product life cycle starting from conceptual design, manufacturing, operation, maintenance, replacements to disposal. It systematically designs, studies failure process, finds out the root causes, suggests improvements and quantifies the product performance over a period of its mission time in contrast to the conventional engineering practices, which mainly focus on design of systems for certain specific functional requirements.

Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety (RAMS)have developed as a new Engineering discipline in the recent past. This has evolved and grown in mostly Aviation and Defence Laboratories because the performance in those fields had to be totally dependable and utmost safe. Metro-railways in urban areas need similar high standard of reliability and safety.  European Commission has issued EN 50126-1999 , updated in the year 2017 for specifying and demonstrating RAMS targets achievement for Railway applications.

Compliance to international Standards is demanded today for every railway systems; for signaling it is compulsory. There are many globally accepted standards around the world such as IEC, EN, AREMA, along with some country specific standards. We are currently in the process of converting (harmonizing) European railways standards into international standards, and one of those is the RAMS standard.

Key  Issue and Suggested Recommendation

    • Specification and Demonstration of RAMS Requirements in the tender documents (e.g. design-based; performance-based specification; or data for similar/earlier projects): Recommendation follow EN 50126-1.
    • Reliability is built-in design, when design is concluded, maximum control over reliability is lost; there are lack of synchronization between design team and RAMS team.
    • Lack of  subject matter expert (SA/RAMS experts), lack of awareness, lack of , etc.
    • Lack of Management support to RAMS activities; more focus on project execution/meeting deadline.
    • Lack of budget allocation ( or no budget) for System Assurance & RAMS.
    • Documentation centric RAMS activities; commercial of the shelf or historical RAMS data are used in most of the cases.

Rs 2,600 crore Aqua Line extension towards Greater Noida in 2 phases

Narendra Shah
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0
Rs 2,600 crore Aqua Line extension towards Greater Noida in 2 phases

Noida, Metro Rail News: The Construction of the Rs 2,600-crore Aqua Line extension project towards Greater Noida to be taken up in 2 phase. With both the Noida and Greater Noida authorities citing funds crunch as a reason for being unable to contribute their share in the project, the construction of Aqua Line extension, expected to cost Rs 2,600 crore, is likely to be taken up in phases. At an upcoming board meeting in December, the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) officials are likely to suggest that the construction of five metro stations on the extended line (two in Noida and three in Greater Noida) to be taken up first, states a ToI report. However, it will need the backing of the Noida Authority as well as an approval from the Uttar Pradesh state government for any such construction work to start on the route.

For the entire project, Noida’s share is around Rs 130 crore, while Greater Noida’s share is around Rs 250 crore. The Centre, as well as the state government, will also contribute for the project by providing Rs 360 crore each. In addition to this, the government is also likely to take a loan of around Rs 1,200 crore for the project. As per the original DPR, the extended line of Noida Metro’s Aqua Line will have nine metro stations in total out of which two will be in Noida and seven will be in Greater Noida. The metro stations in Noida include sectors 122 and 123 and the metro stations in Greater Noida include sector 4, Ecotech 12, sectors 2, 3, 10, 12 and Knowledge Park V.

GNIDA CEO Narendra Bhooshan was quoted in the report saying that as the area was getting more and more populated by the day and needed a stable transport network, they had to start work on the metro project. For phase-wise construction of the route, GNIDA will make a proposal. Recently, a survey was conducted which suggested that work can be started on metro stations till sector 2 in Greater Noida. Bhooshan said that the Greater Noida Authority is ready to spend their Rs 250 crore share. He also said that he would write to his Noida counterpart and would request him to contribute as well. According to the initial DPR, the extension project is scheduled to take two years for completion, however, Bhooshan added that he would request Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) to expedite it.

The 29.7 km long corridor of Aqua Line, which is likely to be thrown open to the public by this year-end, will run from Greater Noida’s Theta to Noida’s Sector 71. Recently, it was reported that the metro fares for Aqua Line service will be lower than those in the Delhi Metro as it will depend on the number of stations traversed, similar to that of Lucknow Metro.

Delhi Metro will soon be adding more coaches on busy routes

Narendra Shah
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0
Delhi Metro will soon be adding more coaches on busy routes

New Delhi, Metro Rail News: The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will soon be adding more coaches on trains running on the main lines to ease travel woes. In a major relief for passengers traveling in crammed Metro coaches.  Another objective behind the move is to improve the frequency of services

The DMRC will be changing most of its  6 coach trains running on corridors Yellow (linking HUDA City center with Samaypur Badli), Blue (Line 3 and 4) that connects Dwarka with Vaishali/Noida, Red (Rithala with Dilshad Garden) and Airport Express Line, into 8 coaches to augment the carrying capacity on these corridors. Around 200 new coaches are likely to be added on these busy routes, of which approximately 50 will be commissioned for the Airport Express Line.

This corridor will be extended further from Dwarka Sector 21 to the upcoming Exhibition cum Convention Centre at Dwarka. The new coaches will be added to maintain the frequency of trains on the extended corridor.

In August this year, the Delhi Metro had written to the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB), seeking funds to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore, to procure additional coaches to address the issue of overcrowded coaches. Another objective is to improve the frequency of train services, especially when the government is promoting the use of public transport to combat constantly plunging pollution levels. Sources claim that the NCRPB is yet to take an action on the request. While the NCRPB usually does not extend such loans for purchasing train coaches, the DMRC is hopeful of striking lucky this time around. This is the reason why it has also started inviting tenders to procure coaches, sources claimed.

The expansion plan has already been delayed by two years for want of funds. According to reports, the DMRC knocked the doors of NCRPB after the  Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) refused to lend money to the rail body to purchase new coaches. The DMRC had planned to increase its fleet by over 580 coaches in a proposal sent to the Delhi government in 2017. The demand, however, was brought down to 200 in the revised proposal sent in June this year.

BEATING RUSH

  • DMRC will soon turn most of its six-coach trains to eight-coach ones to beat the rush
  • These trains will be running on corridors Yellow, Blue, Red and Airport Express Line
  • The Airport Express Line will be extended from Dwarka Sector 21 to the upcoming Exhibition cum Convention Centre.

Chennai Metro has commissioned solar power panels in two more stations

Narendra Shah
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0
Chennai Metro has commissioned solar power panels in two more stations

Chennai, Metro Rail News: Chennai Metro installs solar panels at two more stations i.e Alandur, St Thomas Mount metro stations

“We have successfully installed and commissioned 1,120 kWp solar power plant on the roofs of Alandur and St. Thomas Mount Metro stations and on the ground level at Metro Rail Depot, Koyambedu. This project is expected to generate around 1,51,200 units per month, saving around ₹69 lakh per year,” said CMRL spokesperson.

The CMRL is executing this project under the Zero Capital Investment (ZCI) and is based on the RESCO Model under Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) scheme, on a monthly tariff based payment. Now, the installed capacity of rooftop solar panels by CMRL has a capacity of 3 MW in total. Another 4.6 MW rooftop solar panel installation is under progress and expected to be completed by end of this year.

Consultancy firm

Recently, the CMRL has appointed a consultancy firm for initiating processes to procure electricity from various renewable energy sources like solar, wind, etc., at competitive prices through open access, saving ₹ 1 crore anually.

In October, the CMRL commissioned another 410 kWp solar panel plant on the roof and ground of Metro Rail Depot, Koyambedu. This plant is currently generating around 55,350 units per month saving around ₹14.5 lakh per year.

All is not well with Chennai Metro Rail

The  `20,000-crore Chennai Metro Rail project has been ridden with technical glitches, internal problems, and incomplete works in underground and elevated stretches

The Rs 20,000-crore Chennai Metro Rail project has been ridden with technical glitches, internal problems, and incomplete works in underground and elevated stretches.The underground stretch, which was inaugurated in May 2017, has often been plagued by the train stopping in between, and commuters facing a harrowing time.

Even the construction has been questioned after a roof slate of Shenoy Nagar Metro station fell on a passenger a couple of months ago. On Friday, Chennai Metro was criticised, again, when a passenger took a picture of a leaking roof on the second platform of Anna Nagar Tower station which was inaugurated this year.

“Water was leaking from the a/c duct, but we have changed to a new duct. Only the board needs to be replaced,” said an official. It is reported to be repaired in a couple of days by the station controller.
However, this is not the only incident in the Metro. Sources say that many incidents have not been reported. “There was a fire at night at Pachayappas College station. It was hushed up and rectified,” the source alleged.

Meanwhile, most of the works on the Metro are yet to be completed. Sources say that works are still pending in both elevated and underground stations and many a time, these pose a threat to passengers. There have also been train disruptions. The trains have suffered a breakdown more than seven times.
While officials dismiss it as technical glitches, sources inside Metro Rail blame the lack of skilled and trained employees being used to run the trains. “They have been outsourcing manpower from MEMCO.

The previous managing director was particular that only housekeeping and ticketing should be outsourced. Now, Chennai Metro is outsourcing drivers and plans are to have station controllers also,” a source said.
Prior to outsourcing, the employees of Metro Rail had to undergo training at New Delhi Metro Rail Corporation and after that, one-year skill-based training at Chennai Metro after which they were pressed into service. “Now everything is outsourced mostly to Bengaluru-based companies,” said another source.

Meanwhile, there are internal issues including employees seeking pay rise on par with executives and as per Third Pay Revision Commission. The employees, mostly technicians, junior engineers, and station controllers, allege that the pay rise is not on par with the executives who got nearly 20 percent pay rise.
The employees also claim that Chennai Metro is the only one to have two shifts at most of the stations instead of three.

Chennai Metro has said that the demands of employees are unacceptable. “The junior engineer and technicians are already paid `39,000 and `23,000 respectively, which is high as per industry standards when taken into account the pay scale in government organizations and private establishments,” said a Metro Rail official.

BMRCL seeks 500 million USD loan for airport Metro

Narendra Shah
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0
BMRCL seeks 500 million USD loan for airport Metro

Bengaluru, Metro Rail News: The airport metro project is set to gain momentum with the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited, (BMRCL) seeking a loan worth 500 million USD. The BMRCL will also request Rs 500 crore as aid from the Centre. The move comes after a proposal to raise funds through the User Development Fee (UDF) has been put off.

Managing Director Ajay Seth said the corporation is looking for the $500 million, ideally in a long-term loan of up to 20 years with a moderate interest rate. The formal request for a loan has to go through the Union government. “We have held a discussion with the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The request is yet to be sent to the Union government,” he said.

The BMRCL is trying to shore up funds for the project aer the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) in June blocked a proposal to raise Rs 1,000 crore through UDF. As per the AERA ruling, additional UDF can be levied aer the metro services begin.

The corporation will also seek Rs 500 crore from the Centre as per the new metro policy, where the Union government will provide 10% of the cost for a project, raising funds through innovative financing models.

As per the financial plan approved by the cabinet, the state government is expected to pitch in Rs 1,250 crore, and the Centre, Rs 500 crore (8.40% of the project’s cost).

The alignment of the metro line to the airport is likely to be revised with the BMRCL planning to connect the line at Hebbal instead of Nagavara.

More than 6000 Green Building Professionals Gathered for Greenbuild India 2018

Narendra Shah
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0
More than 6000 Green Building Professionals Gathered for Greenbuild India 2018

MUMBAI, India – (20 November 2018) – The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
concluded its second Greenbuild India conference & expo, which focused on the
intersection of humanity and the built environment. The two-day conference featured
the latest technological innovations, new products, 18 education tracks and was
attended by more than 6000 green building industry professionals. Greenbuild India is
presented by USGBC and ABEC Exhibitions & Conferences Pvt. Ltd.
The inspiring keynote speakers this year were Rick Fedrizzi, chairman and CEO of the
International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) and Elora Hardy, founder and creative
director at Ibuku. ‘Human x Nature’ was the core theme and represented how the green
building movement embraces all of humanity by making sustainable buildings and
environments accessible to everyone, and in doing so, benefits the natural
environment around us.

Gopalakrishnan Padmanabhan, Managing Director – APAC & Middle East, Green
Business Certificate Institute (GBCI) said, “Today I am inspired by what I’ve seen
and experienced at Greenbuild India 2018. It is clear, India’s green building community
is passionately pursuing a higher level of performance and shows no signs of slowing
down. I hope that this innovative spirit, combined with new technologies and ideas will
help define the path forward and the next generation of green building and business.”

Greenbuild India also hosted the Women in Green power luncheon, an all-female
congregation that celebrates pioneering women in the field of sustainability in
construction. This year, ‘Leading with Purpose’ as the theme, Women in Green
celebrated the power of purpose to shape our lives, our careers and our changing
world.

Mili Majumdar, Managing Director of GBCI India and Senior Vice President,
USGBC said, “Women in Green is one of my favourite events at Greenbuild and I
always look forward to this platform that is represented by women’s voices. Taking off
with the theme, ‘Leading With Purpose’ it is a journey that starts from within, it is about
self-expression and being true to ourselves, standing up for what we know is right and
helping others along the way. In times of uncertainty we turn to our inner sense of purpose to sustain our energy and commitment, to bolster our resilience and push us
forward.”

Discussions were primarily centred on the way women can lead with purpose to inspire
others and drive continued creativity and progress. The panel discussion was chaired
by Sonali Rastogi, Founder Partner of Morphogenesis; and included participants Mili
Majumdar, GBCI India; Ashwini Bhide, Managing Director, Metro Rail Corporation;
Teenaa Kaur Pasricha, Independent Director and Film Producer, Green Earth
Pictures; and Anita Arjundas, Business Leader.

A closed door Executive Luncheon, where C-level executives who are leading the
transformation of the green building industry discussed how one can assess the value
of green buildings with respect to Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG)
performance; tools & resources available to manage portfolio data and benchmarking;
preparing for increasingly rigorous sustainability issues at the forefront of business
decision making and engage with investors and IOT platforms. It was attended by top
100 thought leaders from India and saw an elite panel comprising of Gopalakrishnan
Padmanabhan, Managing Director, GBCI APAC & ME Markets; Sangeeta Prasad,
Managing Director & CEO, Mahindra Lifespace Developers Ltd; Hari Krishna V,
Director – Real Estate Investments, CPPIB India Investment Advisors Pvt Ltd.;
Chaitanya Kalia, Partner, EY Climate Change & Sustainability Services; Ragnar
Martens Director, GRESB. In addition, a Facilities Leaders Conclave deliberated on
the role played by the building performance in terms of resource efficiency.
Following the closing keynote, USGBC, recognised five organizations for their
outstanding leadership and achievement in the green building space.

Greenbuild Leadership awards:

  • Hemant Rathod, National Head Structural Glass Solutions, Saint- Gobain India Pvt Ltd
  • Dr. Padmakali Banerjee, Pro Vice Chancellor, Chancellor, Amity University

Certificate awardees:

  • Dr. Jagdish Patel, Mayor, Surat Municipal Corporation
  • Mr. Thirumal Govindraj, Managing Director – Executive Board, RMZ
    Corp
  • Girish Kapur, Vice President Operations – India, USP India

About Greenbuild

Greenbuild is the world’s largest conference and expo dedicated to green building. The
ideals and passion of the green building community come alive at Greenbuild.
Greenbuild brings together industry leaders, experts and frontline professionals
dedicated to sustainable building in their everyday work, and a unique energy is
sparked. Three days of extensive educational programming, workshops, a vast
exhibition floor and ample networking events provide unrivaled opportunities to learn
about the latest technological innovations, explore new products, and exchange ideas
with other professionals. Greenbuild is a multi-year recipient of IMEX Green Meetings
Award and the 2018 show will be held on Nov. 15-18, Mumbai, India. For more
information, visit http://greenbuild.usgbc.org/india and follow @GBCI_India and
@USGBC on Twitter and tweet hashtag #GreenbuildIndia to join the conversation

About U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is committed to a prosperous and
sustainable future through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. USGBC’s
mission is “to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and
operated, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy, and
prosperous environment that improves the quality of life.”
USGBC builds on this vision through the development and improvement of the LEED
rating system, the LEED professional credentials, robust educational offerings, an
international network of local community leaders and USGBC member organizations,
the annual Greenbuild International Conference & Expo, the Center for Green
Schools and other USGBC initiatives, as well as through advocacy and outreach that
encourages and enables green buildings and communities. For more information:
USGBC.org.

About GBCI
GBCI is the premier organization independently recognizing excellence in green
business industry performance and practice globally. Established in 2008, GBCI
exclusively administers project certifications and professional credentials and
certificates within the framework of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building rating systems, as well as
the PEER standard for power systems, the WELL building standard, the Sustainable
SITES Initiative (SITES), Parksmart, EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater
Efficiencies), TRUE Zero Waste certification, Investor Confidence Project (ICP) for
energy efficiency retrofits and the GRESB benchmark, which is used by institutional
investors to improve the sustainability performance of the global property sector. GBCI
was established as an on the ground arm to help provide local support and outreach.
For more information, please visit www.gbci.org/india and follow @GBCI_India on
Twitter and #GreenbuildIndia on social media.

BEML bags Rs.3,015 Crore Contract for Mumbai Metro Corridor

Narendra Shah
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BEML bags Rs.3,015 Crore Contract for Mumbai Metro Corridor

New Delhi, Metro Rail News: BEML, a public sector undertaking (PSU) of the Government has bagged a contract for Rs.3,015 crore for Mumbai Metro Corridor.

Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has contributed to this one of the biggest success stories under Make in India initiatives of the Government. The order includes manufacturing of 378 Metro cars (63 Metro trains of 6 cars each) for Mumbai Metro Corridor 2A, 2B & 7.

BEML was the lowest among seven bidders which included 6 internationally renowned bidders. The state of art, driverless trains shall be manufactured indigenously by M/S BEML.

Supply of trains will begin from October 2020 and completed by December 2022. BEML has earlier also supplied metro coaches in smaller numbers but along with an international player as a JV partner. It has now sub-contracted M/s Hitachi only for some designs. The coaches will be manufactured in the BEML factory at Bengaluru.

Some of the salient features are:

  • Total Trains: 63
  • Coaches per Train: 6
  • Fully Air Conditioned
  • Driverless train compatibility
  • Energy friendly with the regenerative braking system. Train to operate on 25 KV AC traction.
  • Equipped with CCTV surveillance for passenger security and real-time track monitoring.
  • Carrying capacity of 300 passengers in each coach.
  • Stainless steel body with 4 doors on each side.

Evolution of metro rail in India is indeed a breath-taking story. Today about 536 kms of metro lines are operational in 10 different cities namely, Delhi & NCR (317 km), Bangalore,Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Jaipur, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai and Gurugram. In addition, more than 650 kms of metro rail projects are under construction in Delhi & NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Kochi, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Nagpur, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Pune, Bhopal and Indore. Many more cities are also planning metro rail system.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has made concerted efforts for indigenisation of metro rail systems in the country. For this, it has standardized the specifications for metro rolling-stock, signalling, telecom, electrical and civil components. It has also adopted the Public Procurement Order, Make in India (PPO/MII) 2017, for metro rail systems. MoHUA has also stipulated that minimum 75% of the coaches procured against any tender have to be manufactured in India. Alstom, Bombardier, BEML, and Titagarh have setup manufacturing units in India. As a result of the “Make in India” initiatives, the last two big procurement orders for rolling stock in India, floated on international competitive bidding model, have gone to Indian companies. This has also resulted in substantial reduction in cost.

This is one of the largest orders of metro rail coaches in the recent times. BEML has bagged this contract purely on its own competence. The award price per coach which is less than Rs.8.00 Crs (including spares, design, installation, and commissioning) is record lowest in recent times. Seven International manufacturers of rolling stock viz. Alstom, Bombardier, CAF, CRRC, Titagarh, BEML, Hyundai Rotem, participated in the bid. The supply of coaches will start from end of 2020 and will be completed in about two years’ time. The project is being assisted by Asian Development Bank and the procurement has been done following their guidelines and concurrence.

Metro line 2A will connect Dahisar to DN Nagar in Mumbai. Metro line 2B will run further from DN Nagar to Mankhurd via Bandra, and Metro line 7 from Dahisar to Andheri (east).

Centre Agree Metro Railway Plan for Patna – Metro Rail News

Narendra Shah
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1
Centre Agree Metro Railway Plan for Patna – Metro Rail News

Patna, Metro Rail News: The Centre has approved Patna Metro’s detailed project report (DPR) that the state government had submitted last month.

Urban development and housing department minister Suresh Sharma shared this information on Tuesday.

“I have been informed that the Centre has cleared the proposal and sent the file back to us,” Sharma said.

“After going through the details we will submit a proposal to the Centre in which the state government will provide information about funds it will invest from its kitty for this project,” He added and said that sanction for the state’s share will be procured through cabinet approval.

He also maintained that this process will be completed in November itself so that the central approval about financial details can be procured at the earliest and the project formally launched before year-end.

As far as the Patna Metro DPR is concerned, the ambitious project has a cost component of a little over Rs 17,800 crore out of which the Centre and the state had to bear 20 % each and the remaining fund has to be mobilised through loan.

The DPR talks of setting up 33.1-km-long tracks having two corridors — east-west and north-south. While the west-east corridor would run between Danapur area and Patna railway station via Dakbungalow Square, the south-north corridor would run between the inter-state bus terminal and Gandhi Maidan via Rajendra Nagar and Ashok Rajpath.

The document says a time of five years would be taken for project completion from the date of commencement.

Sources in the urban development said funds mobilisation for the project would not be a major hurdle for the state government as several international funding agencies have shown interest in the project.

“We first want central clearance as far as financial details are concerned. After that the process for procuring loan for this project would finally be initiated,” said a source.

The department has also initiated the process of setting up Patna Metro Rail Corporation Limited (PMRCL), which will be responsible for executing the project and the urban development and housing department principal secretary will be its ex-officio chairman.

This corporation will also have directors and a director each would be nominated by the urban development, finance, transport, energy and road construction departments.

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