14.9.15

Vizag Metro snippets

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will execute the Visakhapatnam metro rail project at an estimated cost of Rs.13,488 crore. It is expected to be completed in a period of four years.
The Centre's decision to entrust the project to DMRC was announced by union minister for urban development M Venkaiah Naidu in the midst of submission of a detailed project (DPR) to chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu at a press conference. The CM said that the DPR would be placed before the cabinet shortly for approval.
The DPR has proposed to fix fare at Rs.10 for a distance from 0 km to 5 km, Rs.20 from 5-10 km and Rs.30 beyond 10 km. As per the DPR, it is executed in four corridors -NDA Junction to Kommadi Junction (Madhurawada) for a distance of 22.8 km, Gurudwara to Old Post Office (5.26 km), Thatichetlapalem to China Waltair (East Point Colony) (6.91 km) and NDA Junction to Gajuwaka (8.1 km), a total distance of 42.55 km.
Initially, it was proposed to build the rail project in three corridors. The corridor between NAD Junction to Gajuwaka Junction was recently added following a request from the locals.Venkaiah Naidu said private players did not show interest to take up the project under build-operate-transfer (BOT) system in view of low FIRR (financial internal rate of returns) in the order of 2.08 and 2.059 per cent, forcing the government to ask the DMRC to take it up.
The public-private partnerships (PPP) or BOT modes would succeed only when the returns would be not less than 16 per cent, he explained.Therefore, it will be implemented as a government initiative jointly by the state government and the Centre on the lines of Bangalore, Chennai and Delhi metros.
Venkaiah Naidu expressed hope that Vizag could meet the norms given its population growth of 2.5 lakh every year. The total population of Vizag is registered at 17.30 lakh as per the latest census.
The Union minister said that the Centre has approached Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for financial assistance for the project. The proposed funding pattern under SPV model is as follows according to the DPR: equity by central government 1,504 crore (14.17 per cent), state government 1,504 crore (14.17 per cent), JICA loan (1.4 per cent) and another 8.5 per cent of funds to be raised in the form of market borrowings (tax free bonds on roll over basis).

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