West Bengal’s East-West metro enters into “pink book”
Kolkata- Although a project with Rs. 4,874 crore and a 100-crore allocation might seem smaller, But, West Bengal is still contented with it East-West front. Making its entry into the pink book, the Metro corridor links with the eastern fringes of the city with Howrah. This ultimately means, the Indian Railways has officially accepted it as its key project.
After much delay and hesitation, the government had granted up to 50 percent share in the project to the railways last year. This was followed by the urban ministry granting up to 24 percent of their 50 percent stake contributing to the railways and making it a stakeholder with 74 percent, city’s most sought after infrastructure project.
The Kolkata Metro Railway Corporation (KMRC) officials which is also the implanting agency of the East-West Metro corridor considered it quite important when the railways were pleading for acute fund crisis, they were provided with only Rs. 475 crore for the north-south Metro. However, being granted with Rs. 100 crore is a humble beginning.
A peek into the forthcoming fiscal from the books of accounts stats that the KMRC has proposed the cost of the next fiscal of Rs. 920 crore. Out of this, a Japanese funding agency named Jica will bear Rs. 400 crore. Out of the Rs. 100 crore allocated, the equity cost of the railways will be Rs. 1,058 crore. An additional of Rs. 200 crore will be paid after the August review with the redistribution of funds. However, the balance of Rs. 220 crore will be sub-ordinated as debt.
Further more, the KMRC will also be granted with Rs. 32 crore from the ministry of urban development which is holding an equity cost share of Rs. 364 crore from the project. A sum of Rs. 334 of its equity funding has already been paid by the ministry.
There have been apprehensions that the East-West Metro which has been built based on the latest modern technologies including standard gauge track is likely to meet the same fate like that of Kolkata Metro. All this happened with the railway coming into power by taking over majority of the stakes in KMRC, with no expectations from the Rail Bhavan.
The state minister has been putting in efforts behind the project and has bent on removing the barriers coming in the way. With KMRC already finding ways to shake off the realignment burden, it has been forced upon by the Bengal government.
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