New Delhi: In the past three years, the central government has received 21 proposals for construction of new metro corridors from 10 states and Union territories, of which two have been approved so far, according to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Senior ministry officials said projects are critically examined before being approved. Only two projects — a 28 km line connecting Millennium City Centre Gurugram to Cyber City, Gurugram with Spur to Dwarka Expressway, and a 2 km Kochi Metro corridor — were approved while a majority of proposals are in various stages of approval, they said.
Eight proposals, including two projects (2.8 km and 1.3 km corridors) from Rajasthan for the expansion of Jaipur metro (operations began in 2015), were received between April 2022 and July 2023.
The two proposals from Rajasthan were received in FY 2023-24. The remaining six were received in 2022-23.
Six proposals received in FY 2022-23 include those from Delhi and Haryana for Dwarka-Gurugram line, as well as two corridors of 31 km each for expansion of Hyderabad metro, a 5.4 km line in Pune, a 1.2 km line in Kochi, and a 44 km corridor in Bengaluru.
The total length of these 21 proposed corridors is around 462 km, which is almost half of the existing length of the operational metro network (872 km) in the country.
The spurt in demand for the capital-intensive metro projects is despite the fact that almost all metro networks are in losses and don’t have adequate ridership to break even. This was flagged by the parliamentary standing committee on housing and urban affairs in its report (Implementation of Metro Rail projects — an appraisal) tabled in Parliament in July 2022.
“The Committee is concerned that about 40-45 per cent of the total budget of the Ministry is earmarked for metro projects alone leaving little for other urban infrastructure projects,” the panel said in a report — tabled in Parliament in December 2022 — on the action taken by the government on its recommendations. “The Committee is also aware that several metro projects are attracting less than expected average daily ridership and also operating on losses.”
The panel advised the ministry to “exercise greater caution and discretion” while approving projects. A statement regarding the report was tabled in Parliament on 3 August.
With more and more states proposing metro projects, urban transport experts say that efforts should be made to first improve the bus transport system, especially in tier 2 and 3 cities where average trip length is 5-7 km.
“In the report, the standing committee has said that around 45 per cent of the ministry’s budget is earmarked for metros. While a metro is needed in some cities, there is a need for more all-round development of the city and funding other modes of transportation to help cities become centres of economic growth. Its requirement has to be carefully assessed,” transport expert O.P. Agarwal said.
A total of 643 km metro network has been constructed, or made operational since January 2014 in the country.
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States propose corridors in tier-II cities, expansion despite losses
In the past five years, several states have proposed metro projects in tier 2 cities including a 15 km MetroLite project in Gorakhpur (approx cost Rs 2,670 crore), a 22.4 km MetroNeo project in Dehradun (Rs 1,853 crore), a 33 km MetroNeo project in Nashik (Rs 2,092 crore), a 23 km corridor in Jammu (Rs 4,069 crore), a 25 km corridor in Srinagar (Rs 4,892 crore).
All these proposals are awaiting the Centre’s approval and are being pushed when almost all existing metro metros are running in losses.
In its report, the standing committee had also raised concern about poor metro ridership. “The dismal performance of the majority of the metro rail networks in terms of carrying passengers enough to break-even even after six to seven years of continuous operations shows that (i) faulty DPRs, (ii) lack of proper planning to provide first and last mile connectivity, (iii) provision of parking at metro rail stations, (iv) need for increasing catchment area, etc,” it had said in its July report.
While Rajasthan sent two proposals for expansion of Jaipur metro, the metro has incurred “heavy operating losses” due to low ridership and other factors, states the Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation’s annual report 2021-22. The net operational loss is Rs 8,324.27 crore as per the annual report. The average ridership is around 50,000 per day, as per a metro spokesperson.
Officials in the ministry and metro corporations say that metro networks world over are not profit making ventures. “It is providing a clean, safe and fast mode of mass transit. In most cities, the metros have low ridership as the network is limited to few areas. In the years to come, the benefit can be seen once the cities have substantive corridor length…,” said a senior ministry official.
The UP government is exploring the possibility of starting metro systems in other cities such as Varanasi, Prayagraj Bareilly, Ayodhya and Jhansi, according to Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC).
“To explore alternate possibilities of public transport, RITES was engaged by the Varanasi Development Authority to explore the Ropeway System along with Integrated Multi Modal Public Transport for Varanasi. In the Comprehensive Mobility Report, RITES has suggested implementation of MRTS corridors in two phases,” Panchanan Mishra, deputy general manager, communication, UPMRC, said.
“The draft detailed project report for the metro in Prayagraj is being prepared by RITES. The plan to construct two corridors of 42.4 km in length is being considered. Similarly, Bareilly, Ayodhya and Jhansi Metro System are also in the planning stage and will soon be sent for approval.”
While urban transport experts agree that metros networks world over are not making profit and are needed for mass transit, they say there is a need to carefully assess the requirement.
“Most public transportation projects, whether they involve bus systems or metro rail, generally do not generate profits. In many instances, their primary purpose is not profit generation, as they serve as a public good and contribute to broader societal interests,” Amit Bhatt, Managing Director-India, International Council for Clean Transportation, said.
“When it comes to metro rail projects, they tend to be significantly more cost-intensive, thereby necessitating substantial subsidies. Consequently, it becomes crucial to strategise and develop metro systems exclusively in locations where other viable alternatives are unfeasible.”
Ministry explores ways to bring down construction cost
Working on guidelines to standardise metro construction and operations for bringing down the cost, the ministry has set up four committees to study the existing metro system and prepare guidelines to standardise construction, including design of stations, electrical, signaling system and rolling stock (coaches).
“Currently, all metro networks have different specifications for various aspects of metro construction and operations. Due to this, the cost of construction is very high. We are working on guidelines to standardise the design of the station, which has been done to a large extent, rolling stock, and other things so that suppliers can develop products as per the standard specifications. This will hugely bring down the cost,” a second senior ministry official said, adding that the guidelines are likely to be ready in the next three months.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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