INDORE : Ahead of the state assembly elections, the Union Cabinet approved Metro rail projects for Bhopal and Indore, on Wednesday. The ambitious projects of the Shivraj government would pick up pace after the Cabinet’s nod.
The Indore project will run along the Ring Line (Bengali Square-Vijay Nagar-Bhawarsala-Airport-Bengali Square). The total number of stations is 30. “The project will provide continuous availability of affordable, reliable, safe, secure and seamless transport system in the urban agglomeration of the city, which will reduce accidents, pollution, travel time, energy consumption as well as regulate urban expansion and land use for sustainable development,” it said.
The estimated cost of the project is Rs 7,500.80 crore and it will take four years for completion. The tenders for first civil work package have been invited and work will start soon. The Bhopal metro comprises two corridors of 27.87 Km — Karond Circle to AIIMS (14.99 Km) and Bhadbhada Square to Ratnagiri Tiraha (12.88 Km). The estimated cost of the project is Rs 6,941.40 crore and the project will be completed in four years. “The Karond corridor will pass through the city and connect densely populated areas with bus station, railway stations and the AIIMS. The metro will provide eco-friendly and sustainable public transport to residents, commuters, industrial workers, visitors and travellers,” the statement said.
A special purpose vehicle, Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Co Ltd (MPMRCL), has been constituted to implement both these projects. The projects will be part-funded by the Centre and state government, besides loans from Asian Development Bank (ADB) and New Development Bank (NDB) for Indore Metro while European Investment Bank (EIB) for Bhopal Metro. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had inaugurated the office of the metro project recently and had promised the public of Bhopal and Indore to provide metro rail servicers as soon as possible. Most of the formalities have been completed so that implementation of Model Code of Conduct does not hamper the progress of project.