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“In the presentation, Maheshwari said that by November-December 2009, the tests and trials of the trains will begin and in July 2010 Mumbaiites will see a Metro train running,” said a senior government official unwilling to be named.
In an interview to Newsline last week, Maheshwari had said: “Mumbaiites will see a Metro train running in July 2010, we hope.”
Some senior officials of the MMRDA, which is 26 per cent stake holder in MMOPL, are, however, not so sure. “I don’t think it (Metro) will start by July 2010, but October 2010 cannot be ruled out,” an MMRDA official said.
MMOPL is building the first corridor—Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar—work on which has just started and is scheduled to get over by December 2010.
The state government is planning to redesign the second and third Metro Rail corridors and is also discussing the possibility of dropping the public-private partnership (PPP) model and going for the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) model.
“Since the third corridor (Colaba-Bandra) has huge Viability Gap Funding (VGF) involved, only the DMRC model can be opted for. There was an opinion that after all nine corridors for the Mumbai region are constructed there will be operational issues as there will be different private players who would’ve built a particular corridor. Therefore it’s being discussed that the DMRC model should be opted for,” a senior official said.
About the plans to redesign the second and third corridors, the official said: “The Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd corridor is not viable for commuters. Instead it’s being considered that an uninterrupted Charkop-Colaba route should be constructed while Bandra-Mankhurd should be a separate one.”
The decision on all these “options” is likely in a few days, he said.
On the funding issue, the official confirmed that the nodal agency (MMRDA) may turn to Japan Bank for International Co-operation (JBIC) for financial assistance. “JBIC in principle has agreed to fund the Bandra-Colaba corridor. As the redesigning of the route is being considered, we may ask them to fund other corridors too,” the official said.
JBIC had provided financial assistance for the construction of the Delhi Metro project. The DMRC is acting as a consultant for the Mumbai Metro.
Railway budget today
Wishlist: MUTP phase 2, enhanced passenger safety
* PC Sehgal, managing director, Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation, said: “I don’t know much about the budget, but I know that in this budget MUTP phase 2 will be sanctioned — hundred per cent. And after this sanction, the suburban train scenario will change totally.”
* Deepak Gandhi, president of Mumbai Suburban Passengers’ Association, has said that the commuters do not expect new rakes or world-class stations, but want safety. “They only want a safe journey — 6-7 passengers die in accidents every day. Our requirements are very limited. At present, in both WR and CR, there are around 2500 suburban services, we want them increased to around 4000. And the time table should be more traffic oriented,” he said.
* Chitrasen Singh, president of Paschhim Railway and Madhya Railway Yatri Sangarsh Samiti, said, “This is our long-pending demand that there should be super-fast trains from Mumbai to Varanasi. Also, there should be a separate fund for the suburban section.”
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