Metro may go to smaller cities: Naidu
A proposal to reduce the population norm for financing metro rail projects is under consideration for the urban development ministry. Currently, the Centre finances Metro projects in towns and cities with a population of more than 20 lakh.
The urban development minister M Venkaiah Naidu stated that the government is considering reducing the population criteria to 10 lakh. At a function at Metro Bhawan, Naidu declared about this consideration. According to Census 2011, there are 53 cities in India with a population of over 10 lakh. This might bring down the traffic woes in these cities. The time in commuting will be shortened and the travel fatigue will be reduced if the metro is introduced in these cities.
Naidu also talked about a trend that there was an increase of 30 % in ridership on the airport metro in the past one month. He also talked about a good news that the airport metro’s operating losses had come down. More people have started commuting via the metro who want to reach to the airport or want to come to the city from the airport.
Naidu on Monday inaugurated India’s first ever solar power plant at a Metro station at Dwarka Sector 21 from Metro Bhawan. Union minister of state for power Piyush Goyal was also present on the occasion of this inauguration.
Source- Hindustan Times
Metro, metro development, UD ministry, urban development minister M Venkaiah Naidu, Urban development ministry
