New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has flagged-off the Delhi-Faridabad Metro Line that would allow hassle free travel for around two lakh daily commuters between the national capital and the industrial hub in Haryana.
The extension of the Delhi Metro connects Badarpur to Escorts Mujesar in Faridabad.
The total cost of the project from Badarpur to Escorts Mujesar is nearly Rs. 2,500 crore. Out of this, Rs. 1,557 crore was borne by the Haryana Government, the Centre contributed Rs. 537 crore, while the Delhi Metro provided Rs. 400 crore.
All these are elevated and located on either side of the Delhi-Mathura Road (NH-2).
“The nine-station metro corridor which was 95 per cent indigenously built will provide people a safe, affordable, quick, comfortable, reliable, environment-friendly and sustainable transport facility,” a Haryana government spokesperson said.
Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar, addressing a press conference on Saturday, had thanked the Prime Minister for “gifting” the Metro service which would take the city to “another level of progress” with better connectivity with other NCR towns.
He had also said that the Prime Minister would be announcing the go-ahead for connecting Gurgaon with Faridabad by Metro.
Pune: All decks have been cleared for the tabling of the much-pending proposal of Pune Metro rail in the Union Cabinet for the final approval with the Public Investment Board (PIB) of the Union Finance Ministry on Friday giving a go-ahead to it.
“The PIB has recommended the proposal of Pune Metro rail to the Union Cabinet. There has been no conditions attached for it but some suggestions have been made that have been incorporated,” said Municipal Commissioner Kunal Kumar.
The members of PIB said that the project structure was good and raised no queries on it, he said, adding that the proposal would be tabled in the Cabinet after the Union Finance minister and secretary approves the minutes of the meeting. “We along with the Union government officers have prepared the minutes of the meeting so that they can be signed and the Pune Metro proposal can be tabled in the Cabinet as soon as possible,” Kumar said.
The municipal commissioner said he has made a presentation in the PIB citing the need for Metro rail in the city in the inter-modal integration of various steps to improve the traffic and transport system. buy viagra professional online no prescription
The estimated project cost of the two Metro routes to be implemented at the beginning is Rs 12,298 crore with contribution of 20 per cent each by the state and the Union government, 10 per cent jointly by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and 50 per cent through loan.
Of the contribution of Rs 1,278 crore by local civic bodies, Kumar said, Rs 972 crore is required for land acquisition for implementing the project and if managed through Transfer of Development Rights (TDR), then the actual in cash contribution of PMC and PCMC together would be Rs 317 crore.
The Union Finance ministry had already given a nod to the state government proposal for multilateral assistance of Rs 6,325.50 crore for the first phase of Pune Metro rail project to be taken from the World Bank (WB) and China-based Asian Infrastructure Investments Bank (AIIB).
The project cost is estimated in November last year and the work on the two routes is likely to be completed by 2021-22.
The SPV has planned revenue source mainly from Fare Box, from advertisements, 100 per surcharge increase in Development Charges of commissioning of Metro system, one per cent surcharge on stamp duty registrations, densification of Metro corridor 500 metre on either side by increasing FSI from 1.6 to 4, commercial utilisation of metro stations and depot spaces, parking charges, congestion charges.
Most of the issues related to implementation of Pune Metro rail have been resolved except for the hearing at the National Green Tribunal due on October 27 over the damage to the river for a certain elevated stretch planned along the Mutha riverbed.
The Railway ministry has given its in-principle approval with a condition that the applicable charges need to be deposited with the railways for crossing on the railway land.
New Delhi: Shri Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC), has today been awarded with the prestigious Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Memorial Award on Innovation in Governance. The award was given to the Managing Director during the Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Memorial Summit on Innovation in Governance organised at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
On the occasion, Shri Kumar Keshav said “this award is the result of the efforts of the whole team of Lucknow Metro and we feel very proud to be honoured like this”. “This honour assumes much of significance to Lucknow Metro as it is the first Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Memorial Award on Innovation in Governance and it has been has been bestowed to Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) among various other nominations from reputed organisations in the country”, he added.
It is yet another achievement and public recognition for Lucknow Metro as the Corporation’s sincere effort and dedication in innovation in governance and project completion is recognised in such a glorious way at the national level.
Led from the front by Shri Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) has always displayed itself as a very unique kind of government organisation focussed on innovative ideas to execute and complete the project in an excellent manner in such a stiff target.
The 8.5 km ‘Priority Corridor’ of the North – South corridor is being accomplished in the capital city of Uttar Pradesh and is now a reality for the people of the city. The project is being executed in just over two years which is a record in itself. No other Metro Project has even been able to achieve this feat in the past as compared with Lucknow Metro’s speed of deliverance in the country.
Even contemporary Metro projects in the country have also not been able to match up with the speed of deliverance in the country. The project has achieved the distinction of being the fastest ever Metro project execution that has happened in the country so far.
Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Centre for Creating Livable Planet Earth and Sustainable Development is a national level organisation dedicated to the visions of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, the 11th President of India. It is working towards creating a better and livable planet earth and ensuring sustainable development for the nation through integrated action of youths and citizens.
Noida: The Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) on Friday said the public investment board (PIB) has committed to provide almost Rs.1,034 crore of the funds required for the under-construction Noida to Greater Noida Metro link. Officials are upbeat as financial issues for this 30-km metro project are now resolved.
Santosh Yadav, managing director of NMRC, and Pramod Kumar Aggarwal, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Noida authority, met with PIB officials in Delhi on Friday to get the final approval for funds.
“The PIB’s commitment on funding and approval for our project is a big achievement for our metro link, which will not face financial hurdles in future,” said Yadav.
The NMRC had applied for approval from PIB, a Central government body that clears funds for important infrastructure projects in the country, in October 2013.
“Now, the Centre will start releasing funds of Rs1,034 crore in small instalments as per our needs. The first instalment of Rs.384 crore will be released in the ongoing financial year 2016-17, Rs.400 crore in financial year 2017-18 and remaining amount will be released in the financial year 2018-19,” said Yadav.
The NMRC has set a budget of Rs 5,533 crore for this project that will link Greater Noida with rest of Delhi-NCR. The corporation, which was formed in November 2014 to build metro projects, aims to take almost half of the funds required from Central government agencies.
The remaining funds are to be provided by the Noida and Greater Noida authorities together. Work on the project was started in January 2015 and the metro line is scheduled to become functional by the end of 2017.
The metro link will branch out from Noida’s Sector 71/51 interchange and end at Greater Noida’s Delta 1. The metro stations will be located in sectors 52, 51, 50, 78, 81, Dadri Road, sectors 83, 137, 142, 143, 144, 147, 153, 149, Knowledge Park 2, Knowledge Park 1, Pari Chowk, Alpha 1, Alpha 2, Delta 1 and Depot station, benefiting nearly 15 lakh people. Around 20 km of the line is located in Noida and remaining 10 km in Greater Noida.
New Delhi: The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) today launched ‘Free Wi-Fi’ facilities at Metro stations on its Airport Express Line. DMRC’s Managing Director, Dr. Mangu Singh launched the facility at the Shivaji Stadium Metro station.
The facility titled “Oui DMRC Free Wi-Fi” will be available on all six stations of the Airport Express Line. As of now passengers will be able to log in simply by searching for Wi-Fi options and log into “Oui DMRC Free Wi-Fi”. DMRC aims to extend this facility to all the stations of the Metro network gradually.
For the facility, DMRC has tied up with a consortium led by M/s Techno Sat Comm which presently runs India’s first Wi-Fi on train service on the Delhi-Howrah Rajdhani Express. The facility will use the globally acclaimed “T-Track 2.0 Wave 2 Solution”, also used on high speed trains worldwide.
With the facility, passengers will be able to use all standard internet applications inside the station premises like email, Face book, Google, video chat as well as live streaming of cricket and football matches etc.
The Delhi Metro, in association with Rail Tel Corporation presently provides Wi-Fi facility at four of its major stations – Rajiv Chowk, Kashmere Gate, Central Secretariat and Hauz Khas.
The free Wi-Fi will be an additional facility for the passengers on the Airport Express Line. The 22.7 kilometre long corridor comprising of six stations is continuously registering a steady increase in ridership with the total ridership figure crossing 50,000 passengers in a day in August earlier this year.
Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has instructed officials concerned to expedite the work of metro rail projects in Bhopal and Indore, while ensuring economic viability of projects.
Chouhan reviewed the progress of Metro Rail Projects at the Mantralaya yesterday and gave instructions to speed up the projects and complete them in a phased manner while making them economically viable, an official of Public Relation Department said Friday.
The Metro Rail projects will be administered and managed by Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Company Limited. The CM will be its chairman while Urban Development minister, mayors of Bhopal and Indore will be its members. The company’s administrative structure will be approved by the State Cabinet, the official said. The review meeting also discussed about the routes to be included in the first phase of the project.
Commissioner Urban Administration and Development and Secretary to the chief minister, Vivek Agrawal, while giving a detailed presentation on status of the projects, informed that a total cost of Bhopal Metro Rail Project will be Rs 22,504.25 crore.
It will have seven routes. Its length will be 95.03 kms. Of this, 84.83 kms will be elevated. The first phase will have two routes, Karond-AIIMS measuring 14.99 kilometers and Bhadbhada-Ratnagiri measuring 12.88 kilometers, the official said.
Chances of obtaining financial resources from Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Asian Development Bank were also discussed.
The Indore metro rail will have a total length of 104 kilometres. The estimated cost will be Rs 26762.21 Crore. Work on the first phase – Palasia-Airport-Vijayanagar-Bhavarkua-Palasia will start soon. There is no change in the original map of project.
According to PR department official, Chouhan in the meeting said the options for mobilising financial aids through international organisations should be explored. Administrative and management proposals were approved by the Company’s Board of Directors in its meeting. Bhopal Mayor, Alok Sharma, Indore Mayor Malini Gaur, chief secretary Anthony DeSa, principal secretary to chief minister Ashok Varnwal and senior officers of the departments concerned were present on the occasion.
Ahmadabad: A city-based firm allegedly duped over a hundred unemployed youths by promising them jobs at the Metro Rail project and collecting lakhs of rupees as “application fee”, police said on Saturday.
About a hundred victims of the scam lodged a complaint of cheating at the Karanj police station on Saturday.
These youths had applied for the job of supervisor at a firm, which claimed in its newspaper advertisements that it was associated with the Metro rail project undertaken by the Metro Link Express for Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad (MEGA).
Every applicant was asked to pay Rs 1,050 by September 3 along with the application.
The applicants were then mailed appointment letters and asked to come to the Mirzapur office of the firm on Saturday for interview.
However, when the applicants turned up at the office, it was found to be locked. The mobile number provided in the advertisement had been switched off.
“We have started preliminary investigation and will soon register an FIR based on the investigation,” said sub-inspector KB Vihol.
Smart Transportation will be the backbone of a Vital Project to transform Jammu and Srinagar Cities to Smart City & will create large scale employment both during the Project Execution & the Project Operation phase after the Go-Live and bring in Investment of more than 40,000 Crore to the State.
(Sanjay Sapru, Author)
In the fast paced world of Technology, India is making a mark to create a world-class Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) as an integral part of community infrastructural development. The continuous growth within the country in number of cities, population, traffic, buildings, etc has invariably called for a shift from private mode of conveyance to public mode of conveyance. Over a period of time it has been observed that a successful and well-planned Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) exists in almost all developing Nations. India had its first MRTS or Metro, twenty five years ago in Kolkata (the then Calcutta). Unfortunately this could not spread to other parts of the country due to lack of funds, planning, lack of integration between various systems of mass transportation and above all the absence of comprehensive traffic and transportation planning. For the successful completion and implementation of such projects huge capital investments, long gestation period and complex technology is the need of hour. Research shows that the ideal share of public transport should be around 70% in India’s metro cities, which at present is only around 35%–40%. India is looking to create a world class infrastructure with its existent Kolkata and Delhi Metros. In addition we do have the Metro presence in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Jaipur, Gurgaon and Kochi. Additionally, the proposals for MRTS are being chalked out for Pune, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Kanpur, Ludhiana, Bhopal, Indore and Faridabad, which may be implemented in the next few years.
Key Considerations
MRTS projects are extremely large projects. The key attributes for this are finance, logistics, extensive data, study of economic structures, profiling topography, travel routes, major traffic corridors, detailed surveys etc. Another very important aspect is to learn from its previous limitations and imperfections. We can bring down our operation and maintenance costs by further developing of our in-house technology. This would be a large milestone in order to make such projects self-sufficient.
Cost Factor
At present Metro projects are catering to cities with population of more than four million people. The costs are directly proportional to the areas which are proposed to serve underground, elevated or at grade alignment projects. The high cost of metros is justified by its very high carrying capacity of passengers at a very high speed and with minimum pollution.
Initially the funding of these projects was done through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) funding Model, Delhi Metro model or State / Central Government funding. The concept of Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation (called the LPG model) introduced lately seems to be the most viable option to carry out such large projects across the country. Under this model the private sector developers are encouraged through viability gap funding scheme wherein 60% of the cost is borne by private investor and 40% is borne by the government in terms of grants.
Metros are known to serve the all sections of society at an affordable cost. Due to the huge capital costs involved in the implementation of MRTS it is suggested that government could participate through equity or meeting one time viability gap financing after detailed evaluation. For funding metros the government should provide infrastructure and the operating cost and cost of rolling stock must be met by users and beneficiaries. Where private players of repute are involved, the project could be sealed with private participation based on detailed conditions and period of concession specified. Land will be a major issue in realising the project for which the involvement of parastatal agencies will be critical. Sale of air space, advertisement rights, contribution of major commercial whole sale markets which generate huge volume of traffic, levying of external development charges on builders and promoters and a dedicated fund for MRTS can aid in the funding.
Advantages and Disadvantages
MRTS shall impact the country in many positive ways.
It is environmentally conducive as it considerably reduces noise and air pollution. The emission of toxic gasses and volatile compounds into air is minimized.
It has brought the society closer as all members of the society irrespective of their financial status, religion or cast are able to travel together hence enhancing the social integrity of the country.
It is fast and does not interfere with other traffic, averting accidents and mishaps.
It is a blessing for those individuals who are unable to drive.
The MRTS does not only improve the usefulness and efficiency of Public Transit System but also results in increased commercial development to improve the economy of the country. These are cheap modes of transportation, enabling considerable savings in labor, materials, fuel and energy. It is most efficient in terms of space occupancy and provides comfort with ultra-modern coaches and modern systems like automatic ticketing, advanced signalling systems, automatic train protection system and integrated security systems. Services like ATMs, food outlets, cafés and convenience stores at Metro stations make the journey more fruitful and further add to the economic development.
Last but not the least this system has been successful in reducing the congestion on roads and saving time on travel.
The only disadvantage is that the initial cost of Construction and Implementation is very high. It works best at places where a larger number of people will ride them such as in the center of big and densely populated cities.
J & K State Perspective
The J & K State government has been introduced to the MRTS since 2010 and ever since nothing was being done about it. However, as mentioned above, in other states/cities this system is implemented, operational and running successfully. Recently it was announced by the J&K government that metro projects would be taken up in Srinagar and Jammu under multilateral funding from Japanese Official Developmental Assistance (JODA) as a part of rapid transit system proposed by reputed development consultancy, Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES). The job of making a detailed Project Report about the feasibility of this project in Jammu and Kashmir has been entrusted to RITES. This was done while reviewing the progress of projects being executed by the J&K Economic Reconstruction Agency (JKERA). The meeting was chaired by Chief Minister and it was decided that the Housing and Urban Development Department will act as the nodal department for firming up the metro projects for two capital cities in consultation with the RITES. The Team also has been given a dead line to complete the project, which is a positive and determined approach. The decision has been taken to go ahead for a metro length of 45 Km in Kashmir and 30 Km in Jammu. The routes for the same are suggested in the City Mobility Plan of Jammu and Srinagar cities. The process has been initiated following the offer of the Government of Japan, inviting proposals for technical cooperation under their Technical Cooperation Program for Metro & Railway Projects in the main cities of different states of India.
The tentative routes suggested in the CMP for Srinagar city are Nowgam Railway station to SKIMS via Baghi Mehtab, Rambagh, Jawahar Nagar, Civil Secretariat, Barbarshah, Nowhatta, Hawal, Alamgari Bazar and Pantha Chowk to Shalteng via Lasjan, Badami Bagh, Lal Chowk, Civil Secretariat, Tatoo Ground, Bemina. The routes suggested for Jammu are Amphala Chowk to Bari Brahmna via Bikram Chowk, Gandhi Nagar, Satwari & Bakshi Nagar to Purmandal via BC Road, Baghi Bahu, Trikuta Nagar.
It may not be out of place to mention that since the invention of the wheel, transportation has been the integral part of development and progress. The uncertainty about MRTS, which had plagued the importance of such systems in India, seems to be resolving. The shortcomings of Kolkata Metro which was designed without a rule book followed by Delhi metro being designed on International norms has guided the respective agencies to follow and adopt a set of techniques for the construction, implementation and operation of MRTS in India. The National Mass Transit and Training Research Institute (NMTTRI) in Mumbai (established by Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority, MMRDA), is one of its kinds in Asia imparting training and research on mass transit systems. The annual training courses cater to key issues like Public Transport Security, Safety and Emergency/Disaster Management, Noise Pollution & Abatement Measures for Urban Transportation, Integrated Ticketing, and seamless Travel across Modes and Intelligent Transportation System. We may have one such institute in Jammu and Kashmir State, as well.
Conclusively we can say that the design and planning of cities cannot alienate the importance of an infrastructure in place for the entity called MRTS. A multi-modal transportation system would ensure the use of MRTS to its best potential. MRT – Smart Transportation will be the backbone of a Vital Project to transform Jammu and Srinagar Cities to Smart City & will create large scale employment both during the Project Execution & the Project Operation phase after the Go-Live and bring in Investment of more than 40,000 Crore to the State.
[This article is written by Shri Sanjay Sapru, Srinagar (J&K)]
Chennai: With the entire elevated corridor of the Chennai Metro Rail becoming operational, officials have begun trial run on the seven-km underground stretch from Thirumangalam to Nehru Park. The line is likely to be commissioned by March 2017.
Tunnelling, track work and construction of eight stations on the stretch had been completed. Tracks were checked by operating a four-car train and engineers tested the signals. Officials said the inspections by the Research Designs and Standards Organisations and the commissioner of metro railway might take place soon after metro rail submitted details of the line and sought inspection.
When the 7km stretch gets operational, it will be the city’s first transit service running underground, cutting across
arterial Poonamallee High Road.
Work on a 2-km stretch between Thirumangalam and Shenoy Nagar got over much ahead of the airport line’s completion. However, the nine-km elevated line from Saidapet ramp to airport was opened in September 2016 before the underground line, as officials were aware of the issues involved during inspections to get the final nod.
Hyderabad: The L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited, the concessionaire executing ₹ 16,375-crore Hyderabad metro rail project under the PPP (public, private partnership) mode, has reiterated its commitment to complete the project as per schedule.
S N Subrahmanyan, Deputy Managing Director and President, L&T & Non-Executive Chairman, L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited, in a statement said, “The project is moving on the right track and L&T is committed to the project. There is whole-hearted support and cooperation from the Telangana Government under the Chief Minister.”
“City obstructions that crop up are being tracked and addressed at regular intervals at the highest level, to make sure that the momentum is not lost and the project is completed,” he said.
Providing a mid course project update, he said two stretches of metro project have secured safety certificates.
Of the 72 km metro project, thus far duct foundations for 59.05 km, Piers in 56.61 Km, Span Erection in 47.66 km and track work on 35.70 km has been completed.
And works on 17 stations has been completed in Stage 1 and work at 3 Interchange Stations and other 30 Stations are in progress.
Thus far all the 57 trains (rolling stocks) have arrived at the depots. While one of the rail over bridges has been completed, work on the remaining 7 ROBs is in progress.
Overall 67 per cent of the total work has been completed as of September 30, 2016, which by all standards is a speedy execution, he said.
“Working in crowded and difficult stretches like Sultan Bazaar area is on brisk pace in spite of rains and festive season. We reiterate our commitment to complete this prestigious project expeditiously with all the support and cooperation of Telangana Government,” he said.
Bangaluru: The country’s first start-up incubation centre at a metro rail station will come up in Bengaluru.
According to an agreement signed between the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRL) and city-based Candor Management Services Private Limited, a talent solutions company, on Tuesday evening, the business incubation centre will be established at the Trinity station, located near Trinity Circle on MG Road. BMRCL spokesperson U A Vasanth Rao told the Media that the incubation centre will be functional within a month.
The incubation centre will augment the state government’s efforts to position Bengaluru as one of the top startup ecosystems in the world.
In fact, the proposal to establish business incubation centres at metro stations was mooted at the end of June this year and BMRCL had reasoned: “Bengaluru is the city of innovation and we have carved out spaces required for start-up companies and e-commerce so that the stations themselves become transit oriented destinations (TOD).”
While calling for tenders for renting out the retail space at five different stations including Trinity, BMRC had opened doors for companies established under the Indian Companies Act – 1956 and startups registered with the Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology services (KBITS) department to set up shops at these stations. BMRC also allowed e-commerce companies to set up e-kiosks for buying and selling goods.
