Metro project launch in satellite city by December

If the state government gets its way, Navi Mumbai may get its first phase of metro rail between Belapur, Kharghar, Taloja and Pendhar by December 2013.

It has announced the inauguration of the project on December 31, 2010 with scheduled completion time of three years.

City Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco), the nodal agency appointed for the metro project, has shouldered the responsibility of the viaduct for the elevated rail corridor.
The agency is expected to complete the financial bidding for the viaduct, for the Rs1,694-crore first phase with road length of 10.78 km, by year-end. “We are in the process of appointing a general consultant for the project,” said Tanaji Satre, joint managing director of Cidco.

Cidco officials claimed that since the railway route is elevated there will be no hurdle in acquisition that generally leads to delay in the project. “We are laying viaduct on our roads and it is expected to go as per schedule. This will help us in completing the first phase in three years,” an official from urban development said. The department issued a government order about the metro last week.

The state government has set the time frame for the completion of all the three phases of the metro project. The Rs1,400-crore second phase of the project is expected to start on December 31, 2012 and complete by December 31, 2015. The Rs575-crore third phase is scheduled to start on December 31, 2015 and complete in three years.

Satre said that procurement of the rakes, operation of the railway will the private company’s responsibility appointed through public-private-partnership mode.