The State Cabinet on Wednesday sanctioned the ₹54,777-crore Mumbai Urban Transport Project 3A (MUTP-3A), paving the way for several big-ticket rail infrastructure projects for the suburban network.

Some of the projects covered include the CSMT-Panvel elevated fast corridor, the new Virar-Panvel corridor and procurement of 210 air-conditioned electric multiple units. The Cabinet approval clears the decks for approvals from the Centre. The State also issued a GR saying that relocation and rehabilitation of affected people would be done on the lines of earlier MUTP projects.

Cost sharing

MUTP is being executed on a 50:50 cost sharing basis between the State government and Indian Railways, with the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) as its nodal authority. The State’s share in MUTP-3A will be ₹27,389 crore, which will be further split between the government and various agencies.

A senior railway official said the proposal will now go to the Railway Board and then to Niti Aayog.

It will then be placed before an Extended Board Review, which comprises various central government departments such as Finance and Commerce, and before the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA) for final approval. “It’s only after the CCEA gives its approval that work on the ground can start,” a senior official said.

Of the total cost, ₹14,000 crore will be raised through loans from banking institutions, while the rest of it will be shared by the State and Indian Railways.

Sources said the MRVC is in talks with institutions such as the New Development Bank and Asian Development Bank for loans.