Metro Rail News Magazine July 2017

| Metro Rail News | July 2017 | www.metrorailnews.in 

Contents 

08 News Highlights 22 India’s smart cities will 

need smart public transport 

29 Urban underground 

space solving the problem 

of today’s cities 

37 Delhi Metro to run 

new generation UTO trains 

in Phase-III corridors 

6 Editors Note 

7 Our Editorial Advisory Board 

19 Corporate Updates 

4


40 Need of Mass Rapid 

Transit System in Jammu & 

Kashmir State 

44 Interview with Dr. 

Brijesh Dixit, MD, Maha 

Metro Rail Corporation 

48 Interview with Yuoh 

Jit Shiong, Sr. Manager 

(Design), MRTC Malaysia 

52 PM Modi dreams 

Bullet Train, but India need 

high speed upgrade 

55 Current Tender Notices 

58 Upcoming Events / Exhibitions 

5


Editor’s Note 

The metro rail network in the country is increasing with the mass rapid transit system emerging 

as one of the best solutions for urban transportation. Even as eight metro rail networks covering 

a length of 370 km are operational in the country, over two dozen more projects are lined up. 

Out of the two dozen projects, around 15 are lined up with the urban development ministry. The 

cities that have lined up their plans include Pune, Nagpur, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Vijayawada, 

Kozhikode, Indore, Bhopal, Patna, Guwahati, Kanpur and Varanasi. 

In the last three years, from 2014-2017, the urban development ministry sanctioned Rs30,653.78 

crore, out of which only Rs12,345.33 crore was released to various metro rail companies in the 

country. Similarly, in the current fiscal year, the ministry allocated around Rs17,960 crore for 

metro rail companies and till the first quarter ending June only Rs4,650 crore was spent. The 

figures are for Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, 

Maharashtra and Delhi-NCR region. 

Metro rail projects are capital intensive and are generally undertaken through financial support 

of both the central and state governments in the form of equity and grants. The remaining funds 

are raised through multilateral agencies like Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and 

European Investment Bank (EIB). 

Interestingly, PPP for metro projects has been limited to five in India. Out of these five, one 

project (Mumbai Metro Phase 2) was terminated before it started, while another (Delhi Airport 

Line) was terminated after becoming operational. Currently, there are three operational PPPbased 

metro projects (one in Mumbai, and two in Gurugram) while one project is under 

implementation (Hyderabad Metro). 

ICRA in its report has estimated that in the next five years, metro rail projects worth Rs2 trillion 

are likely to come up for bidding. 

This edition will explore our readers a lot of information on current development in Mass Rapid 

Transit Systems in India. 

We would like to thank all the contributors and companies who are associated with the Metro 

Rail News. We highly appreciate your support and hope to continue our collaboration further. 

Mamta Shah 

Managing Editor 

Metro Rail News 

E-mail: editor@metrorailnews.in 

6


EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD 

(JULY 2017) 

Vol. I / Issue 7 | JULY 2017 

Managing Editor 

Mamta Shah 

Group Editor 

Shashi Prabha 

Associate Editor 

Lallan Prasad 

Advertising 

Rajesah Maheshwari 

Creative Design 

N.K. Shah 

Circulation In-charge 

Priyanka Sahu 

Editorial & Business Office 

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The Editorial Board may or may not concur with the views 

expressed by various authors in this publication. 

Edited and Published by Mamta Shah on behalf of Symbroj 

Media Pvt. Ltd., Plot# 64, Gyan Khand-I, Indirapuram, 

Ghaziabad – 201014, Uttar Pradesh, INDIA 

Percy Bernard Brooks 

Project Management Specialist 

Faiveley Transport Rail Technologies 

Bengaluru (India) 

Haru Imam 

Project Control Engineer 

Persons Corporation 

Saudi Arbia (UAE) 

Ismail Sariman 

MEP Construction Manager 

Louise Berger Egis Rail JV 

Qatar (UAE) 

Shailendra Kumar Shahi 

Line Manager 

WS Atkins India Pvt. Ltd., 

Gurgaon (India) 

Ved Mani Tiwari 

President & COO 

Sterlite Power Transmission Ltd. 

New Delhi (India) 

Yogesh Dandekar 

Sr. Manager – Industrial Design 

TATA Elxsi Limited 

Pune (India) 

Journalist, Md. Tariq Khan 

Special Correspondent 

Hindustan Times 

Lucknow (India) 

Yadav Bharanidharan 

Consultant 

Riyadh Metro Rail Project 

Riyadh (UAE) 

7

NATIONAL 

Sonepat Metro | Haryana approves extension of Delhi Metro Rail from Narela to 

Kundli 

The Haryana Cabinet today approved the extension 

of Metro Rail from Narela in Delhi to Kundli in 

Sonepat district. The project will be financed by the 

state and Central governments, with Haryana 

providing 80 per cent of the funds, and the Centre 

taking care of the rest. The state government will 

contribute Rs 968.20 crore as its share. The 4.86-km 

long extension will have three stations – Narela 

Sector 5, Kundli and Nathupur. The construction for 

the Narela-Kundli extension is proposed to start in 

April 2018 and end by March 2022. 

8

Vijayawada Metro | Andhra CM Naidu backtracks on Vijayawada Metro Project 

After giving much hype to the proposed metro rail 

project connecting Vijayawada and new capital of 

Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh chief minister N 

Chandrababu Naidu seems to have backtracked on 

the project for reasons known only to him. The 

Naidu government has suddenly cancelled the 

tenders called by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, 

which is overseeing the Vijayawada metro rail 

project. This is the second time that the tenders 

have been called off since inception. 

Kochi Metro | Kerala CM Vijayan inspects and takes a ride on Kochi metro train 

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan inspected the 

operations of the Kochi Metro, which will be 

inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 

June 17. Accompanied by Kochi Metro Rail 

Limited (KMRL) MD Elias George and former MP 

P Rajeeve, Vijayan took a ride on the Kochi metro 

train from Aluva to Palarivattom, a distance of 13 

km. Vijayan is also the minister in-charge of 

Kochi Metro. 

Delhi Metro | DMRC introduces E-Rickshaw facility at its NCR metro stations 

To provide last mile connectivity to metro 

commuters, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) 

has formally flagged-off first E-Rickshaw service from 

the Delhi Metro Headquarters. The first fleet of 5 E- 

rickshaws inaugurated were operated from Vaishali 

Metro station. Dr. Mangu Singh, Managing 

Director/DMRC was present as the Chief Guest on 

the World Environment Day Celebrations at Metro 

Bhawan. 


Lucknow Metro | LMRC receives technical clearance from Ministry of Railways 

Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) 

received the much awaited technical 

clearance of its Rolling Stock (Metro Train) 

from the Ministry of Railways, Govt. of India. 

The Lucknow Metro Train (Rolling Stock) has 

been given an approval by the Ministry to 

operate at a maximum speed of 80 km/hr. 

9

Lucknow Metro | France Ambassador visits modern Operational Control Centre 

of LMRC 

His Excellency Mr. Alexandre Ziegler, 

Ambassador of France to India came for a 

visit to Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation 

(LMRC). He visited the Transport Nagar Metro 

Depot where he was welcomed by Shri 

Kumar Keshav, Managing Director; other 

Directors and senior officials of the 

Corporation. Mr. Ziegler visited the Workshop 

Cum Inspection Bay Line at the Depot where 

Lucknow Metro Rolling Stock (Metro Train) 

and the world class maintenance facilities 

available at the Workshop. 

Jaipur Metro | French company EGIS Rail to review project report of Metro-II 

French firm EGIS Rail has been selected to 

review the detailed project report (DPR) of 

Jaipur Metro phase-II proposed between 

Ambabari and Sitapura. As the BJP government 

is apprehensive to construct Rs 10,000 crore 

project, the appointed international firm after a 

survey will recommend methods to Jaipur 

Metro Rail Corporation to revise the cost of the 

project. It will also update the alignment, 

technology and various other aspects in the 

existing DPR. 

Indian Railways all set to launch Bullet Trains with World-Class facilities 

As a step forward in the modernization of Indian 

Railways, the central government went ahead 

recently and are now all set to introduce first 

ever Bullet Trains in the country soon. As per 

reports, the first bullet train of E5 Shinkansen 

series will run on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad 

high-speed corridor and it will be a completely 

new experience for the passengers as these 

coaches will be having changing rooms for the 

babies too with low sinks for hand washing, 

tables for disposing of diaper and toilet seats 

designed for babies. 


11

Kochi Metro | PM Narendra Modi flags off Kerala’s first metro in Kochi city 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 

the first phase of Kochi Metro Rail on 17 th 

June 2017 at Kaloor International Stadium. 

While delivering the inaugural address, Prime 

Minister pointed out that his 

government had prioritised three key sectors 

– Urban infrastructure, Railways and Power in 

the Make in India programme. 


Lucknow Metro | Principal Secretary (Housing & Planning) visits LMRC project 

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) 

launched the cashless token sale/smart card 

recharge facility by using Credit/Debit Cards at 

the Token Vending Machines (TVMs) installed at 

the metro stations of the DMRC network. This 

facility was inaugurated by DMRC’s Managing 

Director, Dr. Mangu Singh, at the Lal Quila Metro 

station of Line-6 in the presence of senior DMRC 

officials. 

Shri Mukul Singhal, Principal Secretary, 

Department of Housing & Planning, Govt. of 

Uttar Pradesh visited Lucknow Metro Rail 

Corporation (LMRC) and reviewed the progress 

of the Lucknow Metro Rail Project with regards 

to the commissioning of the Metro ‘Priority 

Corridor’ in the coming days. The Principal 

Secretary was accompanied by Shri Kumar 

Keshav, Managing Director, Lucknow Metro who 

explained him LMRC’s overall operational 

preparedness with respect to the start of the 

public services of Metro in the Capital. 

Delhi Metro | DMRC launches cashless token sale/smart card recharge facility at 

TVMs 

With this facility, the commuters will now be able to use the unattended Point of Sales (POS) 

terminals at the TVMs by using PIN authentication through their debit/credit cards. Delhi Metro 

also becomes the first-ever metro system in the country to introduce unattended POS terminals 

with Debit/Credit card facility. 

12

Mumbai Metro | International players bid for Mumbai Metro-3 trains 

Alstom, Kawasaki, Mitsubishi, Bharat Heavy 

Electricals Limited (BHEL), etc have come 

forward to supply rolling stock to Mumbai Metro 

Rail Corporation (MMRC) for its Mumbai Metro-3 

between Cuffe Parade and Aarey Milk Colony. 

MMRC received bids from European, Japanese, 

Chinese and Indian private companies. These 

submissions will now be scrutinised for shortlisting 

of companies. The consortiums or 

companies who have shown interest in the 

project are Alston Transport India-Alstom Transport SA France, Construcciones y Auxiliar de 

Ferrocarriles or CAF SA from Spain, CRRC Nanjing-CRRC Changchun-CRRC International 

Corporation from China, Hitachi from Japan, Japan’s Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi 

Corporation along with India’s BHEL. 

Delhi Metro | DMRC starts metro trial run between Shakurpur and Mayapuri on 

Pink Line 

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) 

started trial runs on the 6.5 kms stretch between the 

Shakurpur and Mayapuri elevated section of the 

upcoming 59 kms long Majlis Park – Shiv Vihar 

corridor (Line 7) of Phase 3, also known as the Pink 

Line. The Trial Runs were flagged off by Dr. Mangu 

Singh, Managing Director, DMRC in the presence of 

DMRC Directors and senior DMRC officials. On 

completion, this corridor will become the longest 

corridor of the Delhi Metro Network. 


Kolkata Underwater Metro | KMRC completes India’s first underwater metro 

tunnel 

The tunnelling work under the Hooghly river, the first 

such underwater project in the country, to provide 

metro connectivity between Howrah and Kolkata has 

been completed. The tunnel is a crucial link for the 

16.4 km-long mass rapid transport (MRT) project 

being constructed by the Kolkata Metro Rail 

Corporation (KMRC) at an estimated cost of around 

Rs 9,000 crore. India has joined a select band of 

nations. Another rare feat achieved by Kolkata after 

getting the first metro railway in the country in 1984. 

13

Reliance Infra to consolidate transport businesses 

Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) has initiated a 

process to spin off a new unit, called Reliance 

Transport, to take care of its interests in 

railway, metro, airport and road projects even 

as the proposed listing of Infrastructure 

Investment Trust (InvIT) faces what the 

company calls “some procedural delays” after 

receiving the nod from the stock market 

regulator. Analysts say that the move is to 

generate positive investor sentiment. 

Chennai Metro | CleanMax Solar bags 6 MW solar rooftop turnkey contract 

Onsite solar energy provider CleanMax Solar has 

bagged the order to power Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. 

CleanMax has bagged six MW Solar Rooftop 

Turnkey contract on Resco model (Renewable 

Energy Service Company model) that would be used 

to power metro stations, depots and administration 

buildings. The move was also in line with the 

Centre’s vision of moving towards renewable 

energy by 2022. With the use of renewable energy, 

the company said it would reduce the carbon 

dioxide emission by 7,438 tonnes per year and save 

Rs1.50 crore annually to Chennai Metro. 

Delhi Metro | DMRC to make phase-III project fully operational by March 2018 

14 


The Delhi Metro’s Phase III, an ambitious public 

transport intervention, will be almost fully 

operational by March 2018, bringing vast areas 

of the national capital into the fold of its fast 

expanding network. Stretches of the Pink and 

Magenta Lines, which will together measure 

over 90 km with 61 stations, will be thrown 

open starting this October and the entire 

corridors will be functional by next year. 

The 58-km-long Pink Line, which will connect Majlis Park to Shiv Vihar running along the arterial 

ring road that encircles the city, will be opened in stages between December 2017 and March 

2018, according to the latest Phase III status report. However, a section of the corridor between 

Nizamuddin and IP Extension in East Delhi may not be operational by March as it is stuck due to 

issues pertaining to land acquisition.


Jammu Metro | Divisional Commissioner reviews DPR for Metro Rail in Jammu 

Divisional Commissioner, Dr. Mandeep K 

Bhandari today chaired a meeting to review 

the progress of feasibility report for 

construction of Metro Rail Project in Jammu 

city. The meeting discussed various aspects of 

first phase of the project including expected 

cost, routes, rail stations, over head bridges 

and construction technology. 

Make in India | BHEL ties up with Kawasaki to make steel metro coaches 

State-run engineering firm BHEL today said 

that it has entered into an agreement with 

Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd (KHI), Japan, to 

produce stainless steel coaches and bogies 

for metro rail. According to the statement, 

the agreement covers establishing state-ofthe-art 

design, engineering and 

manufacturing facilities at BHEL, India, using 

Japanese technology. 

Mumbai Metro | Sam India bags contract to built Aarey Car Depot of Metro-III 

The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation 

(MMRC) on Thursday announced that it 

has appointed a Delhi-based contractor 

for constructing Metro car depot of 

Colaba-Seepz Metro-3 underground 

corridor. The MMRC has said that it has 

tweaked the plan and now 3,130 trees 

will be affected due to the construction of 

the car depot. 

MMRC said that it is going to keep 1,073 trees untouched in five hectares of space near the car 

depot which will be known as green zone. The MMRC on June 23 awarded the contract to Sam 

(India) Builtwell Private Limited and is going to construct depot on total of 22 hectares. The 

remaining land will be for the green zone and access way that will be required to connect the 

Metro with the alignment towards the Western Express Highway. 

15

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INTERNATIONAL 

World’s first trackless train unveiled in Central China 

World’s first trackless train recently went on a 

trial run. Train tracks on city streets could be a 

thing of the past. China unveils train that 

travels on ‘virtual tracks’. The Chinese city of 

Zhuzhou, in the Hunan province, has debuted 

a train that runs on “virtual tracks.” The 

product, named Autonomous Rail Transit 

(ART) by railcar-maker CRRC Zhuzhou 

Locomotive, has been created with the hope 

to fundamentally solve urban traffic, 

emissions and other congestion related 

problems, by combining a bus-rail combo 

rapid transit system. 

Alstom plans to manufacture 800 “super high-power” locomotives in India 

Endorsing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 

Make In India vision, French conglomerate 

Alstom plans to manufacture 800 “super 

high-power” locomotives in India over a 

decade, its Managing Director for India and 

South Asia Bharat Salhotra said. Salhotra 

said in an interview that the company was 

also planning to export rail solutions from 

India to Australia, Central Asia and 

SouthEast Asia. Awarded a contract to 

manufacture 800 electric locomotives for 

Indian Railways, Alstom, a world leader in rail transport business, has decided to produce 

them in India — at a factory in Madhepura in Bihar. 

17

Istanbul Metro | Korean company Hyundai Rotem delivers first driver-less car 

Hyundai Rotem has announced it has 

shipped the first unmanned train set for the 

Istanbul metro. In total the South Korean 

rolling stock manufacturer is to supply 68 

lightweight units with aluminum 

bodywork, to be configured into 17 four-car 

trainsets for the Turkish capital. The initial 

contract was signed in December, 2014, and 

is worth KRW 103.8 billion (€79 million). 

India-Italy Transport and Railways intelligence market-place launching soon 

Alstom to renovate 23 locomotives for Akiem 

French multinational company Alstom has 

secured a contract from Akiem to carry out 

the mid-life overhaul of 23 BB 36000 

locomotives to improve their longevity and 

reliability. The new contract follows 

an initial agreement signed in April last year 

to conduct mid-life overhaul of seven BB 

36000 trains, which were operating in 

Morocco. The locomotives are expected to 

operate for additional 15 years following the 

overhaul works. 


The Indo-Italian Chamber of Commerce and 

Industry is happy to announce a partnership 

with DITECFER, District for Rail Technologies, 

High Speed, Safety & Security, in 

collaboration with ArtValley which hosts 

projects and international forums for the 

Italian railway sector. The partnership 

launched on Friday, 23rd June 2017 as 

“India-Italy Transport and Railways 

intelligence market-place” on the occasion 

of the International Conference “India-Italy. 

Industry and intellectual exchange” during 

the 11th METEF Fair in Verona, Italy. 

18


Lucknow Metro | LMRC celebrates World Environment Week with Shramdan by 

employees 

With a motto to encourage mass awareness and 

self-initiated drive for protecting our environment 

and keeping Lucknow Metro a clean and green 

mode of Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) for the 

people of Lucknow, Lucknow Metro Rail 

Corporation (LMRC) led by Shri Kumar Keshav, 

Managing Director started a mass ‘Shramdan’ cum 

environmental drive to celebrate the World 

Environment Week. 

Lucknow Metro | LMRC receives ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007 

certifications 

FRNV celebrates its 9th Foundation day with Delhi Metro 

The Foundation for the Restoration of National 

Values (FRNV), an organization, dedicated to 

raising the consciousness of citizens, especially 

those in the leadership positions, so that everyone 

– irrespective of their role in society– serves the 

greater, national good. The Foundation, which is a 

National, registered society has been active since 

its inception in 2008. It works in the areas of 

Values Based Education, Sanitation, Health 

&Hygiene, Police and Administrative Reforms. 

Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) has been 

awarded with the International Organisation for 

Standardization (ISO) 14001: 2004 

& theOccupational Health & Safety Assessment 

Series (OHSAS) 18001: 2007 certificates in 

recognition of the organisation’s integrated 

management system which complies with the ISO & 

OHSAS standards and requirements. The scope of 

activities covered by these certificates includes the 

civil construction works of all the eight Metro 

stations and the Transport Nagar Metro Depot for 

the ‘Priority Corridor’ 

19

Hyderabad Metro | HMRL’s metro project enters Limca Book of records 

Adding three feats to its name in the Limca Book 

of Records, the L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) 

Limited is the first Metro Rail Project to get 

featured in the Limca Records. In the latest edition 

of the Limca book of records 2017 released 

recently, the three records are mentioned – 

Train Wrap advertisement during the precommissioning 

stage when three coaches of the 

first train of HMR during its trail run between 

Nagole and Mettuguda stations featured the 

footwear brand Centro for three months from 

August 7 to November 11, 2014. 


Lucknow Metro | LMRC receives ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007 

certifications 

Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) has been 

awarded with the International Organisation for 

Standardization (ISO) 14001: 2004 

& theOccupational Health & Safety Assessment 

Series (OHSAS) 18001: 2007 certificates in 

recognition of the organisation’s integrated 

management system which complies with the ISO & 

OHSAS standards and requirements. The scope of 

activities covered by these certificates includes the 

civil construction works of all the eight Metro 

stations and the Transport Nagar Metro Depot for 

the ‘Priority Corridor’ 

FRNV celebrates its 9th Foundation day with Delhi Metro 

The Foundation for the Restoration of National 

Values (FRNV), an organization, dedicated to 

raising the consciousness of citizens, especially 

those in the leadership positions, so that everyone 

– irrespective of their role in society– serves the 

greater, national good. The Foundation, which is a 

National, registered society has been active since 

its inception in 2008. It works in the areas of 

Values Based Education, Sanitation, Health 

&Hygiene, Police and Administrative Reforms. 

20

Smart Cities Project: India’s smart cities 

will need smart public transport 

- Ruchita Bansal 

AAbout 30 per cent of India’s one billion 

population lives in cities. This number is 

nearly equal to the total population of the 

US. The projections indicate that the 

urban population will be close to 600 

million by 2031 and many metro cities will 

emerge by then. Already, the number of 

metro cities with population of one 

million and above has increased from 35 

in 2001 to 50 in 2011. The number is 

expected to rise to 87 by 2031. 

and public transport despite the skyrocketing 

numbers of motorised two wheelers and cars 

in the last two decades. This variation in 

modal shares among the above mentioned 

modes has a relationship between size of the 

city and its per capita income. 

All this would require increased 

investment in the urban infrastructure. 

These investments will define livability of 

the cities. At present, 70 to 75 per cent of 

modes of commuting in most of the 

Indian cities comprise of walking, cycling 

22


“Smart city aspirants” will be selected through 

a “City Challenge Competition” intended to 

link financing with the ability of the cities to 

perform and achieve the mission objectives. 

Each state will now shortlist a certain number 

of “smart city aspirants” as per the norms that 

will be indicated and will prepare smart city 

proposals for further evaluation to seek 

support from Centre. 

Small- and medium-sized cities have a lower 

income than the mega cities and thus 

dependency on private modes there is 

comparatively lesser. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) now 

classifies disability, unproductive life years, and 

premature deaths that are related to road 

injuries as a significant health impact of 

motorisation. According to the Union Ministry 

of Road Transport and Highways, close to 

500,000 road accidents were reported in the 

year 2012 and as much as 11 per cent of global 

road-injury deaths occur annually in India 

alone. 

Urban transport reforms have taken roots in 

India. The momentum for this has come from 

the national policies as well as state 

government programmes. 

With the introduction of a new mission, 100 

smart cities and 500 cities in India will be 

rejuvenated and transformed with an allocation 

of close to Rs 1 lakh crore, for a period of five 

years. The Union Cabinet has already cleared 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet projects— 

smart cities spread across the country and a 

new urban renewal mission named after Atal 

Bihari Vajpayee, replacing the existing one 

named after Jawaharlal Nehru. 

The move is expected to recast the urban 

landscape of the country to make it more 

liveable and inclusive but how do they tend to 

achieve that as this is not the first urban 

renewal mission launched in India to improve 

the urban infrastructure. 

A similar mission was launched in India in 

2006, known as Jawaharlal Nehru National 

Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), and was a 

reform driven Central assistance programme 

for development of infrastructure to provide 

fast track and planned development for the 

65 targeted cities in India. Funding was tied to 

a set of mandatory and optional reforms 

targeted at municipal governance and sectoral 

reforms. It envisaged a total investment of US 

$20 billion over seven years, which is equal to 

funding in the smart cities mission. 

“ 

With many Indian 

cities set to become 

larger than most 

countries, both in 

terms of GDP and 

population, mobility 

should be high on 

agenda… 

24


While the overall JNNURM reforms had 

targeted all urban infrastructure sectors, the 

transport sector had hogged about quarter of 

the JNNURM funds. Even though about 30 

states and union territories qualified for the 

JNNURM funds, transport sector funding was 

allocated majorly to Delhi, with mega cities 

bagging the maximum numbers of projects. 

For getting approval for transport projects, the 

guidelines recommend that the transport 

infrastructure improvement schemes should 

be in compliance with the NUTP (National 

Urban Transport Policy) that had laid down the 

guiding principle for sustainable mobility with 

clear thrust on public transport, nonmotorised 

transport, and transit oriented 

development. The project analysis, however, 

showed that the identified and approved 

projects were not in sync with the spirit of the 

NUTP. The actual spending has been locked in 

car centric infrastructure. 

In JNNURM, under the 

transportation reforms, the roads 

and flyovers category dominated 

with as much as 70 per cent of the 

total number of projects and 15 

per cent were mass-transit 

projects. 

In the name of promoting public transport, 

cities came up with new public transport 

systems such as Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and 

rail-based systems like Metro, Light Rail Transit 

(LRT) and monorail. In many cities, BRT and 

bicycle-inclusive plans were approved by the 

Centre with less focus on space for 

pedestrians and cyclists. This was despite the 

fact that nearly 50 per cent trips are made on 

foot, by bicycle, or by intermediate public 

transport systems in Indian cities. 

What ails transport reforms? 

The mandatory reforms enlisted and envisaged 

under JNNURM scheme required city 

development plans to be prepared (in 2005) 

and stated certain mandatory and optional 

reforms but they did not mention any reforms 

for urban transport. The second economic 

stimulus package in 2008 was tied to several 

reforms specifically related to transport sector 

such as creation of urban transport fund, 

parking policy, advertisement policy and 

constitution of Unified Metropolitan Transport 

Authority (UMTA) that is duly notified by the 

state, at the state and city levels. 

The funding of transport projects was to be 

done in two installments; the first installment 

was given to the selected cities which showed 

interest in procurement of buses from the 

central government. However, a mandatory 

clause for release of second installment was 

giving detailed statement of each of the 

reforms at city and state level. The status of 

reforms track showed that of the total 65 cities 

only five to ten cities had implemented at least 

one reform. 

The monitoring and evaluation framework for 

the JNNURM programme was archetypal of any 

government-sponsored programme which 

rested on tracking of utilisation of monetary 

funds associated with physical targets of 

construction work with least attention to 

benefits accruing to the mass. 

26


system in a city and thus pushing people 

to depend on private transport. 

Is technology the answer? 

The main focus during JNNURM mission and 

now in smart cities approach is introducing 

new technologies as the argument is that it 

will solve the traffic chaos and will serve the 

high-density demands expected on a few 

corridors in the city but Indian cities have 

high-density developments in the form of 

urban slums. This is one of the reasons why a 

good integrated system is more in demand. 

But most of the cities which have developed 

metro systems have really not looked into a 

holistic approach of planning which fails the 

The other pillar of managing Indian cities 

is their governance. The poor state of 

governance in India cities is evident to any 

citizen living in one of them. According to 

McKinsey report on India’s urban 

awakening, since by 2030 many of Indian 

cities and metropolitan areas will become 

larger than most countries in terms of 

both GDP and population, it is vital that 

India addresses such questions. Without 

comprehensive city governance reforms, 

India will deteriorate even further and 

rapidly. There has to be better cohesion 

between the various agencies responsible 

for urban development and planning. 

Every urban plan will need to have a longterm 

view only then will economic growth 

happen otherwise such missions are a big 

failure and create monstrous disasters in 

the form of flyovers and high investment 

mass transit projects with no proper 

feeder services, high accident rates and 

risk to health through increasing air 

pollution. 

28

Urban underground space: Solving 

the problems of today’s cities 

T 

he world-wide trend of increased urbanization creates 

problems for expanding and newly-developing cities alike. 

Population increase leads to an increased demand for 

reliable infrastructure, nowadays combined with a need for 

increased energy efficiency and a higher environmental 

awareness of the public. The use of underground space can 

help cities meet these increased demands while remaining 

compact, or find the space needed to include new functions 

in an existing city landscape 

29


In many cases, underground solutions to 

urban problems are only considered if all 

other (above ground) options have been 

exhausted. When underground solutions are 

considered and evaluated from the planning 

or initial project stages onwards, more 

optimal solutions will become possible. 

The world is increasingly an urban 

environment. Since 2008 more than half of 

the world population lives in cities and the 

world population is expected to increase to 

roughly 10 billion people over the next four 

decades. As the world’s rural population is 

projected to remain stable in this period, 

that increase will occur in urban areas. By 

2050, 70% of all people will live in cities and 

the world urban population will have more 

than doubled compared to the turn of the 

century. 

In developing countries, where most of this 

uncontained population growth will take 

place, the rapidly expanding cities will need 

to meet the increased demands for 

infrastructure. Without efficient transport 

infrastructure, cities will sprawl away from 

the urban core, which strains the 

environment by creating more traffic 

congestion and travel time, loss of valuable 

farm land, and inequitable allocation of 

resources. 

In the developed countries the urban 

expansion is less rapid, but the demographics 

of the population will change, with an 

increasingly large group over 60. These 

population changes bring about new 

demands on the functions a city must provide 

and on the layout of the city, and call for 

continuous improvement in sustainable and 

resource efficient urban development. 

Although high urban density can help cities 

become more energy and resource efficient, 

urban density alone is not sufficient to obtain 

a high standard of living. Comparing the most 

densely populated cities with the most 

liveable ones shows there must be other 

factors involved. This paper proposes that an 

efficient and integrated use of the 

underground is one of these factors and gives 

a brief overview of the possible solutions the 

underground offers to improve the factors 

contributing to quality of live: safety, health, 

convenience, and comfort. 

An urban population that is increasingly 

aware of the factors that improve quality of 

living, poses increased demands on their 

environment with respect to: reliable and safe 

transport of people and goods; dependable 

utilities, water distribution and sewerage 

systems; sustainability of the environment 

and limited urban sprawl; green spaces and 

recreational areas; reduced energy use and 

reduced emissions and noise levels; 

aesthetics and conservation of heritages; 

efficient use of real-estate and public space. 

In existing urban areas these demands pose 

significant challenges, as the space needed 

for developing new functions or relocating 

and improving existing ones is often not 

readily available. Placement of infrastructure 

and other facilities underground underground 

30


presents an opportunity to find the needed 

space, but it is often considered only as a 

last resort. This stems from a paradox, as the 

underground is considered only when 

surface space is exhausted and no other 

solutions exist anymore for the complex 

urban problems to be tackled. This 

complexity and the obstructed access to the 

underground, created by the lack of space 

for the problem to be solved, almost 

inevitably lead to higher cost, giving 

underground solutions an expensive image, 

which in turn leads it to be considered less 

readily. 

In newly developing metropolises that 

paradox need not exist, as initially the 

access to the underground is not obstructed 

and unique opportunities exist, if engineers, 

city planners and decision makers can come 

together and recognize that in order to 

reach an optimal solution, the underground 

option needs to be considered and used 

from the start. 

The rapid and unconstrained expansion of 

these cities is only part of the problem. 

Structured city planning that includes 

underground options is still limited to a few 

examples. In general the awareness that the 

underground offers a possible solution for 

urban problems remains low, even though 

the issue has been raised on numerous 

occasions, e.g. Webster, 1914 and Sterling 

and Carmody, 1993. Recently Working 

Group 20 “Urban Problems – Underground 

Solutions” of the International Tunnelling 

and Underground Space Association (ITA) 

presented an overview of exemplary 

projects highlighting underground solutions 

to typical urban problems, in a renewed 

attempt to raise this awareness. WG20 was 

founded in 2002 as part of ITA in order to 

identify urban problems that have been solved, 

or could have been solved, by the use of 

underground space or facilities, and to increase 

the awareness inside and outside the ITA. 

Other groups active in raising such awareness 

include the Committee on Underground Space 

(ITACUS), also part of ITA, and the Associated 

research Centers for Urban Underground Space 

(ACUUS), an international interdisciplinary 

association. 

Urban underground solutions 

Many dense urban environments face problems 

due to lacking infrastructure for transit, 

distribution of resources, goods and services. 

When paired with the demands listed above, 

these problems can be elaborated to include: 

traffic congestion; poor environmental 

conditions due to noise and air pollution; lack 

of safety, security, and protection against 

natural disasters and flooding; crowding and 

lack of space for work and recreation; 

restrictions when preserving aesthetic qualities 

and (cultural) heritages of the urban 

environment; aging infrastructure for 

distribution of resources, sewage conveyance 

and treatment; and combination effects of the 

above. 

31


Traffic congestion 

Probably the most recognized problem is the 

need for congestion relief in city streets. 

Time can be saved by using separated rail 

systems in order to reduce the rush hour 

traffic pressure. Hundreds of hours per 

worker per year can be saved in this way, as 

the cost of congestion in OECD countries is 

estimated to be equivalent to about 2 

percent of the GDP. 

But mass transit systems offer other 

benefits, as they tend to require less surface 

area than road traffic. Studies show that car 

traffic takes up 30 to 90 times more space 

than metro systems. Similarly, public road 

transport takes 3 to 12 times more space. By 

moving from above ground car traffic to 

underground mass transit systems, 

enormous amounts of surface land can be 

freed up for other uses. 

Continually improving tunnelling and 

excavation support technology adds to the 

success of urban rail systems. Advances in 

Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) technology 

now allow tunnelling in more difficult 

ground conditions – even below the ground 

water table – with little disturbance to the 

surface. The surface influence is nowadays 

limited enough to realize bored tunnels even 

in highly sensitive city environments with 

protected cultural heritages, such as for 

example the historic city centres of 

Amsterdam and Rome. 

Pollution and noise 

Highway noise and emissions from vehicles are 

recognized as pressing problems in urban areas. 

In order to reduce the noise impact, sound 

barriers may be erected, but the visual impact 

of such measures is major. It is often the case 

that residential property values near freeways 

are reduced due to high noise levels from cars 

and exhaust emissions. Also, there are 

associated health and safety issues for living 

close to a freeway. 

Once again, moving passenger transport from 

cars to mass transit systems can reduce the 

noise and pollution impact at the local level, 

but also at a larger scale as mass transit 

systems tend to be more energy efficient and 

substantial energy savings can be obtained by 

the increased use of metro systems. 

Alternatively, over the last few decades, many 

cities have constructed ring roads and roadway 

tunnels to improve their traffic conditions and 

to adapt the road network to the predicted 

demand. At the same time the travel times 

have improved and the impact of traffic on the 

surrounding residents has been reduced. Now, 

with city developments encroaching on existing 

ring roads, several cities have started to move 

surface sections of these ring roads below 

32


ground in order to further reduce their 

impact. Some examples are the double-deck 

tunnels in the A86 in Paris, the large 

diameter tunnels for the M30 in Madrid or 

the cut-and-cover tunnels for the A10 in 

Amsterdam. 

An even greater impact on their 

surroundings may be caused by the elevated 

highways, mainly constructed in the 1950s 

and 60s in a number of, mainly US, cities; for 

example - Boston, Seattle, and San 

Francisco. These giant elevated structures 

through down-town areas are now seen as 

unsightly, noisy, possibly unsafe, and provide 

only limited access to areas adjacent to the 

freeway. Many cities are considering or in 

the process to replace the elevated 

highways by urban road tunnels. An example 

is the Alaskan Highway in Seattle, which 

when completed will be the largest diameter 

bored tunnel in the world. 

These transitions from surface or abovesurface 

roads to underground solutions in 

more or less the same location are often 

complex and costly. While the original 

decision to build these roads above ground 

often focused only on direct construction 

costs, decision makers should include realestate 

impacts, structural life span, and longterm 

sustainability when making such 

choices. This would help to avoid such 

unfavourable situations and reduce the life 

time cost of urban transport. 

Protection against natural disasters 

With concentration of population, urban 

areas are particularly vulnerable to failures 

in infrastructure due to ageing of the 

systems or those caused by other natural 

forces. Growth of population not only 

means more people are relying on the 

infrastructure, but at the same time that the 

man-made facilities may increase the severity 

of the disaster. For example, urbanization 

means more paved area leading to more severe 

flooding, as well as loss of water resources 

recharging groundwater. 

Underground rivers can be constructed to 

increase run-off or divert storm water. Large 

diameter tunnels have been bored below cities 

such as Buenos Aires and Tokyo for this 

purpose. The SMART tunnel in Kuala Lumpur 

takes this concept a step further, as this tunnel 

functions as a road tunnel during dry periods 

and is closed off for traffic and used as a stormwater 

tunnel during flooding periods. 

Also, it should be realised that the underground 

may provide a setting that is difficult to build in, 

but that underground structures offers better 

natural protection against environmental 

elements, including destructive weather and 

seismic events. Underground facilities and 

metro systems are less prone to earthquake 

damage have suffered little or no damage in 

major earthquakes. 

“ 

Underground rivers 

can be constructed to 

increase run-off or divert 

storm water. Large 

diameter tunnels have 

been bored below cities 

such as Buenos Aires and 

Tokyo for this purpose. 

____________________________ 

33


Lack of space and preservation of heritage 

and environment 

Most of the underground examples above 

are not intended for a long-term human 

presence. This stems from the human 

preference to live, work and recreate above 

ground. Historically, underground structures 

were primarily intended for shelter or 

served as entry and connection points for 

mass transit systems. Over time, a wider 

range of functional facilities has taken up 

underground residence, but often still with a 

short-intended stay for individuals below 

ground. Mostly the aim was to free surface 

space for other human needs and to 

improve the living conditions of cities. 

Recently, the aim is more and more to not 

only keep surface space free and to create 

new space and functions, but to do so in a 

manner that preserves existing buildings and 

cultural heritages. This is especially true for 

public functions housed in historic 

monuments. In all these cases additions to 

existing monuments have been realized 

without lowering the visual quality of the 

original buildings, and at the same time 

creating new floor space, with limited access 

points and a small footprint in order to 

preserve the security of the buildings and 

their collections. 

And such underground extensions to 

monumental buildings are not limited to public 

buildings, but nowadays also include private 

residences, with the iceberg houses of London 

as the grander examples of the possibilities the 

underground offers. 

Utilities and infrastructure 

Focusing on the larger underground facilities it 

is easy to overlook the many utilities that are 

traditionally placed below ground. Especially 

the addition of separated sewage systems for 

household waste water streams and storm 

water and of distributed heat-and-cold storage 

systems or shallow geothermal systems 

requires a large underground footprint if all 

placed directly in the ground. If not properly 

regulated and zoned, the increasing number of 

utilities creates underground space shortages in 

the shallow subsurface utility layer, and often 

causes increased surface disruptions given the 

increased number of parties that needs to 

inspect, repair or replace their underground 

utilities. 

Utility tunnels, small tunnels placed at shallow 

depth that in turn contain cables and ducts for 

different utilities, are a solution here. Not only 

do they reduce the effective footprint for 

utilities, as they can be placed closer together 

inside the utility tunnel, but these utilities can 

also be inspected and repaired without the 

need to dig in the subsurface. 

34 

Not only utility pipelines, but also the 

associated treatment plants and facilities can 

be placed underground. 

Underground waste water treatment plants 

such as in Stockholm, Rotterdam or 

Guangzhou City show how such facilities not 

only free up space at surface, but also reduce


the olfactory impact to neighbouring 

residences normally associated with these 

plants and help reduce the overall 

environmental impact of waste water. 

Underground development is an important 

tool in developing and reshaping urban 

areas to meet the challenges of the future. 

Placement of infrastructure and other 

facilities underground presents an 

opportunity for realizing new functions in 

urban areas without destroying heritages or 

negatively impacting the surface 

environment, and at the same time brings 

opportunities for long-term improvements 

in the environmental impact of cities and 

more efficient use of space and resources. 

These benefits are there for existing, 

redeveloping cities, but can be implemented 

for newly developing cities more easily and 

more cost effectively, for even greater 

benefits. 

The number of examples given in this paper is 

limited, but already in this small set it can be 

observed that many of these underground 

solutions can solve or help improve multiple of 

the problems that urban development face: 

traffic congestion; environmental problems; 

lack of (green) space; need for protection 

against disasters; lack of infrastructure for food, 

energy, water and sanitation. 

When planning and developing cities, the 

underground should not be overlooked by 

planners, engineers and decision makers. 

Raising the awareness of the benefits 

underground space can bring is a first step 

towards a systematic use of underground space 

in urban environments. 

This article is written by Geo- 

Engineering Department, Delft 

University of Technology . 

35

Though the concept of driverless train is not new in the developed 

countries, it is still a novel idea in India. On one side, driverless trains are 

being championed as a way of avoiding human error and reaching new 

levels of efficiency at a time when many metro systems are operating at 

the very limits of their capacity. On the other, critics are concerned about 

entrusting public safety to a driverless system, as well as the specter of 

mass job losses. In this context, the announcement of Delhi Metro’s first 

driverless train was a proud moment for India. On 4 June 2015, the first 

driverless trains arrived in Delhi. These trains will run on the Phase III 

corridors covering 58-km long Majlish Park-Shiv Vihar (Line 7) and the 

over 38-km long Janakpuri (West)- Botanical Garden (Line 8). The trains 

will be fully operational by the April of 2017. 

37


According to DMRC officials, more than 60 

such driverless trains are in the manufacturing 

process at the Bharat Earth Movers plant in 

Bengaluru and 20 such trains will be 

manufactured in South Korea’s Changwan by 

the end of 2015. These 6-coach trains are 

equipped with advanced features. 

Some of the advanced features in these 

driverless trains are: 

Modern technology: These trains are 

significantly upgraded and eco-friendly. 

These trains can run at a maximum speed of 

95 kmph and their operational speed is 85 

kmph. 

CCTV Camera: CCTV cameras are installed 

for inside and outside view of the train. The 

CCTV images could be directly accessed by 

the control centre in driverless mode. 

Front Camera: These trains are equipped 

with front camera in exterior of both cabs so 

that the OCC people can see the status of 

path (route) and signals. 

How Does the Driverless Train Operate? 

The first driverless train that arrived in Delhi in 

the first week of June will begin service with 

the help of manual operators or drivers but will 

be fully operational without drivers by moving 

to unattended train operation (UTO) by April 

2017. Under the UTO mode, these new trains 

will be controlled and their movement 

regulated by the Operations Control Centers 

(OCC) of the Delhi Metro system and not by 

manual train operators. 

Dynamic Route Maps: Dynamic route maps 

are available in each door panel to let 

passenger know their journey status. 

USB Charging Slots: While the present 

metro coaches already have 230V AC 

charging sockets, the new generation metro 

trains will have USB slots for mobile 

charging. 

Increased carrying capacity: The capacity of 

carrying passengers has also been increased 

38


in the new trains. Each coach can 

accommodate a maximum of 380 

passengers, which means in the 6-coach 

train, almost 2,280 passengers can travel. 

Different shape passenger friendly grabs 

poles: The grabs pole provided in the car are 

shaped differently so that more persons can 

hold them during jerk / braking in train. 

Energy efficient: The new trains are more 

energy efficient than the earlier ones with 

better regeneration of energy during 

braking. There are more energy-efficient 

subsystems inside the coach such as LED 

lighting and air conditioning systems. 

LCD Screens: Each coach has four 18.5-inch 

LCD screens continuously displaying audiovisual 

messages and commercials. 

Multi-colour passenger seats: Fibre 

reinforced plastic seats have been 

introduced to add colour. Each coach is 

equipped with different colors of passenger 

seats i.e. Red, Pink, Blue, Orange. The 

reserved seat is colored with dark shade. 

Obstacle Detection Device: These new 

generation trains are equipped with 

advanced obstacle detection device. It 

means when train hits with a metal or hard 

objects it will stopped automatically. 

Noise reduction device: The wheels of these 

trains are equipped with noise reduction 

devices. 

Driverless train safety fears 

One of the main objections to fully 

driverless metro networks is a perception 

that handing total control over to an 

automated system poses a threat to public 

safety. This is partly driven by the natural 

comfort derived from having a qualified human 

driver on the train to react to unusual 

situations and provide a friendly face to the 

public. 

Will It Be a Success? One of the main 

drawbacks to driverless metro trains is a 

common thought that handing total control 

over to an automated system can put 

passengers at risk. We are always used to travel 

in public transport driven by a trained driver 

who can respond to unusual situations and 

provide a friendly atmosphere to the public. 

However, we cannot ignore the benefits of 

driverless trains. 

Driverless trains have the advantage of not 

committing human error. Automated metro 

trains are more energy-efficient and always run 

on schedule. It is said that energy consumption 

by these trains can be cut by 30% depending on 

the degree of automation. Moreover, these 

trains will be able to carry 50 passengers more 

in each coach as compared to the driver-driven 

metro trains. Considering the driverless metro 

networks in advanced cities of the world whose 

safety records are generally excellent, we 

should not worry much about the safety of 

driverless trains in Delhi. 

This article is written by Metro Rail News 

Editorial Team. 

39

Need of Mass Rapid Transit System 

in Jammu & Srinagar State 

Smart Transportation will be the backbone of a Vital Project to 

transform Jammu and Srinagar Cities to Smart City & will create 

large scale employment both during the Project Execution & the 

Project Operation phase after the Go-Live and bring in Investment 

of more than 40,000 Crore to the State. 

I 

n the fast-paced world of Technology, India 

is making a mark to create a world-class 

Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) as an 

integral part of community infrastructural 

development. The continuous growth within 

the country in number of cities, population, 

traffic, buildings, etc has invariably called for 

a shift from private mode of conveyance to 

public mode of conveyance. Over a period 

of time it has been observed that a 

successful and well-planned Mass Rapid 

Transit System (MRTS) exists in almost all 

developing Nations. India had its first 

MRTS or Metro, twenty five years ago in 

Kolkata (the then Calcutta). Unfortunately 

this could not spread to other parts of the 

country due to lack of funds, planning, lack 

of integration between various systems of 

mass transportation and above all the 

absence of comprehensive traffic and 

planning. For the successful completion 

and implementation of such projects huge 

40


capital investments, long gestation period 

and complex technology is the need of hour. 

Research shows that the ideal share of 

public transport should be around 70% in 

India's metro cities, which at present is only 

around 35%–40%. India is looking to create 

a world class infrastructure with its existent 

Kolkata and Delhi Metros. 

In addition we do have the Metro presence 

in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, 

Jaipur, Gurgaon and Kochi. Additionally, the 

proposals for MRTS are being chalked out 

for Pune, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Kanpur, 

Ludhiana, Bhopal, Indore and Faridabad, 

which may be implemented in the next few 

years. 

Key Considerations 

MRTS projects are extremely large projects. 

The key attributes for this are finance, 

logistics, extensive data, study of economic 

structures, profiling topography, travel 

routes, major traffic corridors, detailed 

surveys etc. Another very important aspect 

is to learn from its previous limitations and 

imperfections. We can bring down our 

operation and maintenance costs by further 

developing of our in-house technology. This 

would be a large milestone in order to make 

such projects self-sufficient. 

Cost Factor 

At present Metro projects are catering to 

cities with population of more than four 

million people. The costs are directly 

proportional to the areas which are 

proposed to serve underground, elevated or 

at grade alignment projects. The high cost of 

metros is justified by its very high carrying 

capacity of 

passengers at a 

very high speed 

and with 

minimum 

pollution. 

[Sanjay Sapru, Sri 

Nagar] 

Initially the funding of these projects was done 

Private Partnership (PPP) funding Model, Delhi 

Metro model or State / Central Government 

funding. The concept of Liberalisation, 

Privatisation and Globalisation (called the LPG 

model) introduced lately seems to be the most 

viable option to carry out such large projects 

across the country. Under this model the 

private sector developers are encouraged 

through viability gap funding scheme wherein 

60% of the cost is borne by private investor and 

40% is borne by the government in terms of 

grants. 

Metros are known to serve the all sections of 

society at an affordable cost. Due to the huge 

capital costs involved in the implementation of 

MRTS it is suggested that government could 

participate through equity or meeting one time 

viability gap financing after detailed evaluation. 

For funding metros the government should 

provide infrastructure and the operating cost 

and cost of rolling stock must be met by users 

and beneficiaries. Where private players of 

repute are involved, the project could be sealed 

with private participation based on detailed 

conditions and period of concession specified. 

Land will be a major issue in realising the 

project for which the involvement of parastatal 

agencies will be critical. Sale of air space, 

advertisement rights, contribution of major 

commercial whole sale markets which generate 

41


huge volume of traffic, levying of external 

development charges on builders and 

promoters and a dedicated fund for MRTS can 

aid in the funding. 

Advantages and Disadvantages 

MRTS shall impact the country in many positive 

ways. 

It is environmentally conducive as it 

considerably reduces noise and air pollution. 

The emission of toxic gasses and volatile 

compounds into air is minimized. 

It has brought the society closer as all members 

of the society irrespective of their financial 

status, religion or cast are able to travel 

together hence enhancing the social integrity of 

the country. 

It is fast and does not interfere with other 

traffic, averting accidents and mishaps. 

It is a blessing for those individuals who are 

unable to drive. 

The MRTS does not only improve the usefulness 

and efficiency of Public Transit System but also 

results in increased commercial development to 

improve the economy of the country. These are 

cheap modes of transportation, enabling 

considerable savings in labor, materials, fuel and 

energy. It is most efficient in terms of space 

occupancy and provides comfort with ultramodern 

coaches and modern systems like 

automatic ticketing, advanced signalling 

systems, automatic train protection system and 

integrated security systems. Services like ATMs, 

food outlets, cafés and convenience stores at 

Metro stations make the journey more fruitful 

and further add to the economic development. 

The MRTS does not only improve 

the usefulness and efficiency of 

Public Transit System but also 

results in increased commercial 

development to improve the 

economy of the country. These 

are cheap modes of 

transportation, enabling 

considerable savings in labor, 

materials, fuel and energy. 

Last but not the least this system has been 

successful in reducing the congestion on 

roads and saving time on travel. 

The only disadvantage is that the initial cost 

of Construction and Implementation is very 

high. It works best at places where a larger 

number of people will ride them such as in 

the center of big and densely populated 

cities. 

J & K State Perspective 

The J & K State government has been 

introduced to the MRTS since 2010 and ever 

since nothing was being done about it. 

However, as mentioned above, in other 

states/cities this system is implemented, 

operational and running 

successfully. Recently it was announced by 

the J&K government that metro projects 

would be taken up in Srinagar and Jammu 

under multilateral funding from Japanese 

Official Developmental Assistance (JODA) as a 

part of rapid transit system proposed by 

reputed development consultancy, Rail India 

Technical and Economic Services (RITES). The 

job of making a detailed Project Report about 

the feasibility of this project in Jammu and 

42


Kashmir has been entrusted to RITES. This was 

done while reviewing the progress of projects 

being executed by the J&K Economic 

Reconstruction Agency (JKERA). The meeting 

was chaired by Chief Minister and it was 

decided that the Housing and Urban 

Development Department will act as the nodal 

department for firming up the metro projects 

for two capital cities in consultation with the 

RITES. 

The Team also has been given a dead line to 

complete the project, which is a positive and 

determined approach. The decision has been 

taken to go ahead for a metro length of 45 Km 

in Kashmir and 30 Km in Jammu. The routes for 

the same are suggested in the City Mobility 

Plan of Jammu and Srinagar cities. The process 

has been initiated following the offer of the 

Government of Japan, inviting proposals for 

technical cooperation under their Technical 

Cooperation Program for Metro & Railway 

Projects in the main cities of different states of 

India. 

The tentative routes suggested in the CMP for 

Srinagar city are Nowgam Railway station to 

SKIMS via Baghi Mehtab, Rambagh, Jawahar 

Nagar, Civil Secretariat, Barbarshah, Nowhatta, 

Hawal, Alamgari Bazar and Pantha Chowk to 

Shalteng via Lasjan, Badami Bagh, Lal Chowk, 

Civil Secretariat, Tatoo Ground, Bemina. The 

routes suggested for Jammu are Amphala 

Chowk to Bari Brahmna via Bikram Chowk, 

Gandhi Nagar, Satwari & Bakshi Nagar to 

Purmandal via BC Road, Baghi Bahu, Trikuta 

Nagar. 

It may not be out of place to mention that since 

the invention of the wheel, transportation has 

been the integral part of development and 

progress. The uncertainty about MRTS, which 

had plagued the importance of such systems in 

India, seems to be resolving. The 

shortcomings of Kolkata Metro which was 

designed without a rule book followed by 

Delhi metro being designed on International 

norms has guided the respective agencies to 

follow and adopt a set of techniques for the 

construction, implementation and operation 

of MRTS in India. The National Mass Transit 

and Training Research Institute (NMTTRI) in 

Mumbai (established by Mumbai 

Metropolitan Regional Development 

Authority, MMRDA), is one of its kinds in Asia 

imparting training and research on mass 

transit systems. The annual training courses 

cater to key issues like Public Transport 

Security, Safety and Emergency/Disaster 

Management, Noise Pollution & Abatement 

Measures for Urban Transportation, 

Integrated Ticketing, and seamless Travel 

across Modes and Intelligent Transportation 

System. We may have one such institute in 

Jammu and Kashmir State, as well. 

Conclusively we can say that the design and 

planning of cities cannot alienate the 

importance of an infrastructure in place for 

the entity called MRTS. A multi-modal 

transportation system would ensure the use 

of MRTS to its best potential. MRT – Smart 

Transportation will be the backbone of a Vital 

Project to transform Jammu and Srinagar 

Cities to Smart City & will create large scale 

employment both during the Project 

Execution & the Project Operation phase 

after the Go-Live and bring in Investment of 

more than 40,000 Crore to the State. 

(This article is written by Mr. Sanjay Sapru, 

Sri Nagar (Jammu & Kashmir State) 

43

Exclusive Interview with 

Dr. Brijesh Dixit, Managing Director, 

Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation 

Dr. Brijesh Dixit 

MD, Maharashtra 

Metro Rail Corporation 

Dr. Brijesh Dixit, presently heading Maharashtra 

Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. as Managing Director. 

Associated with Indian Railway for over 30 years 

including association with Mumbai suburban and 

urban rail transport for over 15 years, at various 

levels covering planning, designing, constructing 

and maintaining large scale rail infrastructures & 

operation of services and administration of 

institutions on both Western and Central 

Railways. Known for Total Transformation of Rail 

infrastructure and quality of services to both 

passenger and freight customers and public in 

general as DRM Nagpur, Central Railway. 

44

The new metro rolling stock manufacturing 

guidelines have just been declared by the 

Urban ministry, what is your opinion about the 

work ability of the proposed manufacturing 

plan in the future? 

Dr. Brijesh Dixit: Ministry of Urban 

Development (MoUD), Govt. of India has 

standardized the broad parameters of Rolling 

Stock for metro railways in India and also 

formulated mandatory conditions for 

incorporating in all Rolling Stock Tender 

Documents to promote indigenization. Already 

Indian companies such as BEML Ltd., 

Bombardier Transport India Ltd, Alstom 

Transport India Ltd. are supplying coaches to 

Indian Metros. As such there is no doubt on the 

workability of these conditions. Further, due to 

standardization, the delivery period and cost of 

Rolling Stock production and maintenance will 

reduce further. 

Will the metro coach manufactured in India be 

of the same standard and quality as the 

imported coaches being currently used in 

India? 

Dr. Dixit: At present Metro coaches are being 

manufactured in India as well as being 

imported. Standard and quality of indigenous 

coaches is at par with imported coaches. 

We all believe that when Maruti car came into 

India in 1983, it changed the face of the 

automobile industry and today we have almost 

all brands of the cars moving on our roads in 

one way or the other, do you feel that the 

manufacturing 75% of metro coaches in India 

under the Make in India policy, would be a 

game changer for the railway industry in the 

coming years? 

Dr. Dixit: Manufacturing 75% of the coaches in 

India would be a game changer for railway 


industry similar to Maruti for automobile 

industry since all major Rolling Stock 

Manufacturers of the world would have to 

set up their manufacturing hubs in India. This 

would increase competition and significantly 

decrease the cost of production and 

maintenance. Further, “Make in India” will 

enhance employment and boost up economy. 

We understand that you are now managing 

both the Nagpur and Pune metro projects, 

which is a very challenging responsibility, 

how do you manage your time to give 

effective output for both the projects? 

Dr. Dixit: I love challenges and I am a strong 

believer of ‘Nothing great in the world has 

ever been accomplished without passion’. I 

am highly passionate towards my work so 

managing time isn’t really a concern. I take 

up things as and when they appear apart 

from the already planned schedule. Thanks 

to the fantastic team I have at Maha Metro 

we are able to give effective output. 

“ 

Manufacturing 75% of 

the coaches in India would 

be a game changer for 

railway industry similar to 

Maruti for automobile 

industry since all major 

Rolling Stock 

Manufacturers of the world 

would have to set up their 

manufacturing hubs in 

India. This would increase 

competition and 

significantly decrease the 

cost of production and 

maintenance. 

45

The Nagpur metro is coming up very fast can 

you please give some in site to the progress in 

the projects and by when would the trial runs 

take place? 

Dr. Brijesh Dixit: Nagpur Metro/we began the 

journey as an ambitious Rail Project to provide a 

safe, reliable, efficient, affordable, commuter 

friendly, energy saving and environmentally 

sustainable rapid public transport system for the 

Nagpur Metro Region. The company was 

incorporated on 18th February 2015 as Nagpur 

Metro Rail Corporation Limited (NMRCL). Lately 

it has been reconstituted into Maharashtra 

Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MAHA- 

METRO) for implementation of all metro rail 

projects including Pune Metro Rail Project 

Phase-1 in the State of Maharashtra outside 

Mumbai Metropolitan Region. It is a joint 

venture of Government of India & Government 

of Maharashtra, with 50:50 equity. 

Nagpur Metro Rail Project cover a distance of 

38.215 Km (32.415 km elevated & 5.8 km Atgrade) 

divided into two corridors i.e. Khapri to 

Automotive Sq (19.658 km) & Lokmanya Nagar 

to Prajapati Nagar (18.557 Km) with 36 stations. 

The estimated completion Cost is ₹ 8680 crores. 

On 12 th May, 2017, we are introducing common 

mobility card in association with SBI bank for 

seamless travel of Metro commuters in various 

transport modes. 

We have noticed many projects of Pune Metro 

being tendered now. Please tell us which 

projects which are under bidding presently and 

more about the recently awarded tenders in 

Pune Metro. Our Readers would like to know 

more about the companies working for Pune 

Metro for Civil Works and Rolling Stock? 

Dr. Dixit: Pune Metro rail project cover a 

distance of 31.254 km (26.9 km elevated & 4.35 


km underground) divided into two corridors 

i.e Pimpri Chinwar Municipal Corporation 

(PCMC) to Swargate (16.589 Km) & Vanaz to 

Ramwadi (14.665 km) with 31 stations and 

two Car maintenance depots. The total 

completion cost of the Metro Rail corridor 

will be Rs.11,420 crores. 

Out of 4 reaches, tender for for PCMC-Range 

Hills of Corridor 1 have been 

awarded. Hyderabad-based infrastructure 

construction company NCC has bagged the 

first construction contract for the Pune 

Metro. This is a Rs 499-crore bid for the 

construction of elevated metro rail viaducts 

for the 10.75 km of the metro line. While 

tender for 7.5 km from Vanaz- Civil Court of 

Corridor 2 is currently active. 

Geotechnical Investigation & Topographical 

Surveying has been substantially completed. 

The tenders for carrying Environmental 

Impact Assessment (EIA) and Social Impact 

Assessment (SIA) are also active. 

We also have invited tender for Station 

Designing Consultant for Priority Section. 

What are the new projects coming up and 

How can the private and foreign companies 

participate in the projects for the Pune 

Metro? Any special technology / solution 

provider you seek? 

Dr. Dixit: Tender for Construction of Stations 

in Reach 1 and Reach 2 are planned to be 

invited soon. Tenders are open to all entities 

in India as well as abroad through the up-tothe-minute 

technology of e-portal. 

Dr. Dixit further explained about the 

following special technologies that Maha 

Metro Rail Corporation is planning to use in 

future for speedy development:- 

46

• Pre-Fabrication Technology in 

Construction MAHA-METRO has been 

conceptualized and designed to use natural 

Solar Energy and make use of rain water 

harvesting, green building techniques, biodigester 

technology, enhancing green belt by 

tree plantations, water recycling plant in 

depots, pollution reduction methods. MAHA- 

METRO has gone a step further towards 

making it the Greenest Metro by signing a 

MoU with DRDO (Defense Research and 

Development Organisation) for propagation 

and installation of “Bio Digester 

Technology”. MAHA-METRO is the first 

Metro in India to adopt this technology with 

an objective of keeping eco-friendly clean 

environment and make use of organic waste 

and waste water. 

• Non-Fare Box Revenue targeted to be above 

30% of revenue through- i) additional stamp 

duty, ii) premium on extra FSI through Transit 

Oriented Development (TOD), iii) additional 

development charges, iv) Real Estate 

development at world class stations and 

depots. 

• Targeting 10% Project Cost Saving by 

optimization of designs, specifications & 

resources 

• Multi-Modal integration, First & Last mile 

connectivity & promoting Non-Motorised 

transport. 

• Introduction of Common Mobility Card for 

seamless travel of commuters in various 

modes of transport. 

• MAHA-METRO is the first to adopt Superior 

Project Management through Digital Project 

Management Platform using 5-Dimensional 

Building Information Modeling (5D BIM) an IT 

based platform to ensure tight control over 

costs, time, world class quality, safety and 

environmental protection of the project. The 

contract has already been awarded. The 

Vendor will supply, install, implement ERP 

and 5D-BIM solution and provide support 


• services to design, setup and ramp-up 

Owners Support Office (OSO) with primary 

domain expertise – Metro/Railway. 

• Reduction in cost – Lifecycle saving of 

approx 800 Cr. 

• Faster delivery of Project through effective 

project management. 

• Visualization of construction before 

execution. 

• Control Baseline Schedule, Track Critical 

Path. 

• Alerts/Clash detection in near real time. 

• Control on Budgets and Cash Flow. 

• Reduced error in Documentation. 

• Reduced Claims/Litigations. 

• Higher quality, better-performing 

Infrastructure due to high visibility to all 

stakeholders. 

• Reduced reworks. 

“ 

Nagpur Metro Rail 

Project cover a 

distance of 38.215 

Km (32.415 km elevated 

& 5.8 km At grade) 

divided into two 

corridors i.e. Khapri to 

Automotive Sq (19.658 

km) & Lokmanya Nagar 

to Prajapati Nagar 

(18.557 Km) with 36 

stations. The estimated 

completion Cost 

is ₹ 8680 crores. 

__________________________ 

Source: Rail Analysis 

47

Exclusive Interview with 

Yeoh Jit Shiong, Senior Manager (Design, 

Interface), MRT Corporation (Malaysia) 

As part of Equip Global’s exclusive interviews featured at the Annual Rail 

Engineering & Maintenance Summit in its 2017 edition, we are honoured 

to introduce and share an interview conducted with our distinguished 

guest speaker Mr. Yeoh Jit Shiong, Senior Manager (Design, Interface), 

MRT Corporation (Malaysia). Official asset owner of the MYR 50Billion 

Klang Valley MRT project since 2011, MRT Corporation is envisaged to 

radically transform future Greater Kuala Lumpur’s public transportation 

coverage and five-folding current rail ridership by 2020. Mr. Jit Shiong is 

involved in construction & implementation of SBK Line Underground 

works, SSP Line Underground works, feasibility studies for Selayang Link 

& MRT Line 3 (CCL), while liaising with national authorities for utilities 

relocation works as well as mitigation of clashes and interfacing with 

various rail system contractors. 

48

Mr. Jit Shiong, tell us about your career and 

experience in Railways industry? What are 

your present roles in Klang Valley Mass Rapid 

Transit Project and any important projects in 

future timeline? 

Jit Shiong (JS): I’m currently assuming the 

position of Senior Manager, managing Interface 

in Design and Planning Department with Mass 

Rapid Transit Corporation (MRTC) in Malaysia. 

I’ve been fortunate to be involved in various 

Mega-Projects in Malaysia such as the world’s 

first dual purpose tunnel Stormwater 

Management and Road Tunnel (SMART) project, 

the Electrified Double Track (Ipoh-Padang Besar) 

and Malaysia’s first Mass Rapid Transit project. 

I’m also involved in the construction of Hamad 

International Airport, Qatar, Bukit Panjang MRT 

Station, Singapore as well as LRT Extension 

Project, Malaysia. 

I’m involved in various stage of the project from 

feasibility study, planning, tendering, design, 

construction, testing & commissioning as well as 

operation and maintenance. Currently I’m 

overseeing the final stage of the Sungai-Buloh 

Kajang (SBK) Line Phase 2 completion. Phase 1 

of the project has been completed and opened 

to public 2 weeks ahead of time in December 

2016. 

I’m proud to say that the current status of Phase 

2 is on time and is progressing well. We have 

successfully handed over to the operator (Rapid 

Rail) on the 1st of May 2017 for them to start 

the trial operation. We are looking to open the 

Phase 2 by July 2017. I’m also involved in the 

preliminary design stage for Sungai Buloh – 

Serdang – Putrajaya (SSP) Line where works are 

starting to take shape. We have rolled out 31 

work packages worth RM30 billion and the 

remaining 38 packages with approximately RM 

2 billion will be awarded between this end of 

this year and 2018. Current status of SSP Line is 


Yeoh Jit Shiong, Sr. Manager (Design, 

Interface), MRTC, Malasiya 

at 5.3% and is on track with the construction 

schedule. 

Malaysia is now in a railway open season 

where there are numerous projects on-going 

such as MRT SBK Line & SSP Line, High Speed 

Rail (Kuala Lumpur – Singapore), Light Rail 

Transit 3 (Bandar Utama – Klang), East Cost 

Rail Line (ECRL) and Electrified Double Track 

Project (Gemas – Johor Bahru). Exciting times 

ahead I would say. 

In supervising and delivering present 

project, who do you need to liaise with and 

are there any barriers to timely delivery and 

quality assurance? 

JS: Mega projects like SBK Line & SSP Line 

involves a lot of different stakeholders. One 

of the biggest obstacles that we face during 

SBK Line was land. In Malaysia, when you 

own a piece of land, you practically own the 

airspace above it and the ground beneath it 

till the core of the earth. This is a nightmare 

for our underground works for our stations 

and tunnels as it involves some private lands. 

To overcome this, we have used a provision in 

the National Land Code to limit the depth of 

ownership to allow the tunnel to exist below 

their land. With this, we manage to achieve a 

49

win-win situation where the owner of the land 

is compensated while still able to stay/operate 

where he is and MRTC can proceed with the 

works beneath the said land. 

In any big scale project, it is always important to 

have good supervision. It is important to ensure 

the workmanship delivered is up to standard 

and no short cuts are taken. We have various 

stakeholders to ensure that this is done. On site, 

we have our supervising consultant (SC) who 

sign-off the work on behalf of the consultants. 

This is to ensure the works are carried out as 

intended. We also have our own engineers on 

site to witness the works and for critical works, 

such as integrated test, our presence (as owner) 

is mandatory. Apart from that, we also have 

Independent Consulting Engineers (ICE) to 

supervise and monitor the works on the ground. 

As the project spans over 51km in length with 

31 stations, supervision requires a lot of 

manpower. We only have 5 years to deliver this 

project, you can imagine the amount of 

planning required to execute this. Proper 

planning is the key to ensure that the project is 

delivered on time and of the desired quality. If 

you don’t plan, then you plan to fail. What 

always happen in project is the planning 

happens, but it is not reflective of what was 

actually done at the project site. 

Your presentation at 6th Rail Engineering & 

Maintenance Summit 2017 will be on 

Maintenance Considerations for Underground 

Rail systems from Design perspectives. Could 

you outline 1-2 main focus of your speech and 

discussion? 

JS: We are all aware that we don’t have much 

time to spare during engineering hours. As a 

designer, one should take this into consideration 

and ensure that the design is catered for the 

short window of the engineering hours. 


As a designer, one should think ahead and 

make the life of the operator easier by taking 

into consideration the maintenance activities. 

Design and construction activities are very 

different from actual operation as we are 

dealing with live equipment and operational 

equipment whereas during construction, a lot 

of temporary works can be done. Drawing a 

straight line is a simple task for an engineer - 

however, in reality - whether that straight line 

is constructible and then, in future, whether 

it is maintainable – and that’s questionable! 

Many times, we have seen buildings with 

minimal to practically zero maintenance 

space. This is especially relevant in 

underground where space is limited and very 

costly to provide. As owner/financier tries to 

limit the capital cost, the future 

maintainability is jeopardized. We need to 

find the balance between the 2 and get the 

best of both worlds. I’ll also touch on how 

technology advancement can assist us in 

designing better underground space and well 

as how it improves maintenance in design. 

“ 

In any big scale 

project, it is always 

important to have good 

supervision. It is 

important to ensure the 

workmanship delivered 

is up to standard and no 

short cuts are taken. 

We have various 

stakeholders to ensure 

that this is done. 

50

With Building Information Modelling (BIM), 

there are plenty of opportunities for this 

technology to provide better sight into the 

future. Information can be provided directly to 

designers at the tip of their fingers for design 

consideration, making design works being 

approached in a holistic way rather than 

conventional design where a lot of information 

is not available and many decisions are made on 

assumptions. 

At 6th Rail Engineering & Maintenance Summit 

2017 we are observing exciting panel of 

speakers around the world including 

representative speakers from London 

Underground – Transport For London, MTR 

Hongkong, CrossRail Project, Road and 

Transport Authority Dubai, WMATA, Inland Rail 

Project, Sydney Rail, HS2, etc. What will you 

expect to learn from this conference? 

JS: I’m excited to meet various personnel from 


different parts of the world. It is conferences 

like this that we are able to share our ideas as 

well as learning from a different perspective 

as we have different considerations and 

experience due to our diverse culture and 

environment. Engineers do not stop learning, 

every day by meeting new people and 

exchanging ideas we are able to gain more 

knowledge and learn from other projects. I 

expect to hear different opinions and ideas 

from representatives from all around the 

world. It would be a great opportunity to be 

present to hear what experts around the 

world thinks. 

Join Mr. Yeoh Jit Shiong and other leading 

decision makers from Rail Operators and 

Major Contractors as well as 

technology/solution providers at 6th Rail 

Engineering & Maintenance Summit 2017, 

taking place between 22-25 August in 

Singapore. 

51

PM Narendra Modi dreams Bullet Train, but 

India needs high speed upgrade 

M 

oving trains to a higher speed, comfort and safety band both 

within cities and between them would have a greater impact 

on the 4.5 billion suburban and 3.8 billion passengers who 

travel on the rail network annually, than a showcase project 

like the bullet train. 

The Bullet Train project highlights:- 

• Highlight of Japanese PM Shinzo Abe’s visit is Rs 98,000-crore bullet train project 

• Project will take two-and-a-half years to plan, eight years to complete 

• Railways says Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train fare will be around Rs 6 per km 

• At 300-350 kmph, Mumbai-Ahmedabad will take less than two hours to cover 

• Six proposed high-speed rail routes will bring down the cost of living and lead to 

economic development 

• India cannot depend on air travel alone for reasons of energy efficiency and 

climate change 

52

An agreement on the Rs 98,000 crore bullet 

train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad is the 

highlight of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo 

Abe’s visit to India. The project will be financed 

with a 50-year yen loan at 0.1 percent, which 

includes a moratorium on interest payments 

for the first 20 years. 

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu’s aides say the 

train will be viable with rates that are one-anda-half 

times the current AC first class fares, or 

nearly Rs 3,000. That is Rs 6 per km. 

Viability will depend on traffic and the 

frequency of service. Rail officials say there is 

enough between the two cities: trains are 

chockfull and flights are packed. At 300-350 

kmph, the distance should be licked in less 

than two hours. This will create additional 

demand. With quick visits possible, more 

people will travel. Earners might persuade 

their families to relocate outside expensive 

and congested Mumbai. 

Financial Rate of Return 

The Japanese International Cooperation 

Agency (JICA), the aides say, has estimated the 

financial rate of return at 4.4 percent a year. 

This is less than the yield on government 

bonds. But the economic rate of return – or 

the impact on the economy – is estimated at 

13 percent annually. 

Fares alone will not be enough. Japanese 

bullet trains are cross-subsidised by revenue 

from property development. India’s bullet train 

corporation should be able to skim the 

increased land value it will create along the 

route through industrial enclaves and 

townships. 

The project will take two-and-a-half years to 

plan and eight years to complete. 


Though Japanese financial terms seem 

fetching, they may not actually be so. Former 

railway official Ved Mani Tiwari who, until 

August, was director of Kochi Metro Rail, 

found the dollar to be the most stable over a 

40-year period, with annualised volatility of 

4.5 percent. The currencies constituting the 

Euro yo-yoed by 6.5 percent while the yen 

swung the most at 9.5 percent annually. 

India May End Up Paying More 

If the Japanese loan for the bullet train is ‘tied’ 

and India can only buy Japanese equipment it 

might pay more than it should. Japanese 

electric engines for the Japanese-financed 

western freight corridor cost more than Rs 50 

crore each. Alstom India has undertaken to 

supply 

higher capacity (12,000 hp) electrical engines 

with maintenance thrown in from its 

Madhepura plant for Rs 24 crore each. 

Making Travel Efficient 

As India’s economy grows and people’s 

income goes up, it will need an efficient way 

of moving large number of people quickly 

over long distances. It cannot depend on air 

travel alone for reasons of energy efficiency 

and climate change. Trains use one-fifth the 

energy of airplanes and the carbon emission 

per passenger is much lower. 

The Railways have already conducted studies 

to examine the viability of six high-speed rail 

routes. These are: 

• Delhi–Chandigarh–Amritsar (450 km) 

• Pune–Mumbai–Ahmedabad (650 km) 

• Hyderabad–Dornakal–Vijaywada–Chennai 

(664 km) 

• Chennai–Bangalore–Coimbatore– 

Ernakulam (649 km) 

• Howrah–Haldia (135 km), and 

53


• Delhi–Agra–Lucknow–Varanasi–Patna (991 

km). 

But if funds were finite and India had to choose 

between rail services that would give the 

biggest bang for money, it would opt for 

elevated 200 kmph semi-high speed trains 

connecting the metros with satellite cities that 

would make quick getaways possible. 

• Japanese International Cooperation Agency 

estimates financial rate of return at 4.4 

percent a year 

• Economic rate of return or the impact on 

the economy estimated at 13 percent 

annually 

• If Japanese loan is ‘tied’ and Japanese 

equipment purchased, India might end up 

paying more 

• India needs more freight-only rail corridors 

and upgrading of existing routes to semihigh 

speed 

• Moving trains to higher speed, comfort and 

safety would have a greater impact 

Decongest Metros 

If one could cover the distance between Delhi 

and say Agra or Alwar in about an hour, it would 

make sense to live there and work in the 

capital. Such services would decongest the 

metros, bring down the cost of living, improve 

the quality of life and spread economic 

development around. 

They would also boost domestic manufacturing 

of railway equipment, just as intra-city metro 

rails have done. There would be a lot more 

demand for engines, coaches and 

communication and signalling equipment, 

which would spur the ‘Make in India’ campaign 

.The Japanese had themselves recommended 

semi-high speed for the Delhi–Mumbai route 

when the western freight corridor became 

operational. A JICA study expected 60 percent 

of freight trains on the Delhi-Godhra route, 

and 90 percent on the Godhra–Mumbai leg to 

shift across. 

The capacity released would make semi-high 

speeds passenger trains of up to 200 kmph 

possible on the existing track (with fenced or 

elevated tracks, heavier rails, curves designed 

for tilting and collision preventing signalling 

systems). 

Freight-Only Rail Corridors 

JICA has estimated the cost of a 12-hour 

travel-time route between Delhi and Mumbai 

to cost a little less than $7 billion, or Rs 47,000 

crore. A 10-hour journey time track would 

cost more than double ─ Rs 107,500 crore. 

The slower track was said to be financially 

viable. 

If he had Rs 1 lakh crore to play around with, 

Alstom India Managing Director Bharat 

Salhotra, who was formerly with the Railways, 

says he would spend it on more freight-only 

rail corridors and upgrade the existing routes 

to semi-high speed. India, he says, requires 

quick mass transport before rapid transport. 

Moving trains to a higher speed, comfort and 

safety band both within cities and between 

them would have a greater impact on the 4.5 

billion suburban and 3.8 billion passengers 

who travel on the rail network annually, than a 

showcase project like the bullet train. 

This article is written by renowned 

Journalist, Mr. Vivian Fernandes. 

54

| Metro Rail News | April 2017 | www.metrorailnews.in 

Company 

Name 

Delhi Metro 

Rail 

Corporation 



Corporation 

Location Description of Work Date of Sale 

of Tender 

Documents 

New Delhi 

India 

New Delhi 

India 

DMRC invites open bid from 

interested parties for licensing out 

87 built-up shops/bare spaces at 38 

Metro Stations & 2 Metro 

Residential Locations in DMRC 

Network through open auction for 

commercial utilization 

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation 

(DMRC) Ltd. invites Open e-tenders 

from pre-qualified applicants,who 

fulfill qualification criteria as 

stipulated in Clause 1.1.3 of NIT, for 

the work “Manufacture,Supply, 

Installation, Testing And 

Commissioning of Signage And 

Graphics For Seven 

ElevatedStations (MIA, Ghewra, 

Tikri Kalan, Tikri Border, MIE, Bus 

Stand and City Park) And One 

Depot(Bahadurgarh Depot) Of Line- 

5 Of Phase-III Of Delhi MRTS 

Project.” 

10.07.2017 

to 



to 


Last date of 

submission 



55

| Metro Rail News | May 2017 | www.metrorailnews.in 

Company 

Name 



Corporation 



Corporation 



Corporation 

Location Description of Work Date of Sale 

of Tender 

Documents 

New Delhi 

India 

New Delhi 

India 

New Delhi 

India 

NIT for the work “Contract No: 

DMRC/Ph-III/CPM-7/Horticulture 

/2017 - Horticulture and 

landscaping work in the Road 

Median along Viaduct, Stations 

and Park in CPM/7 section of Line- 

7 from Mayur Vihar Phase I to 

Vinod Nagar Corridor of Delhi 

MRTS Phase-III”. 

NIT for “Contract CC-128: Re- 

Carpeting of Main Carriage Way of 

Ring Road with Dense Bituminous 

Macadam &Dense Bituminous 

Concrete and Restoration of 

Service Road, footpath, painting of 

road lanes, Painting of Kerb stones 

etc. & other related works along 

Ring Road from Dhaula Kuan to 

Delhi Cantt. In Phase-III of MRTS, 

Delhi. 

NIT for “Contract: CC- 127: Design 

& construction of twin Box tunnel 

by Cut & Cover method and one 

underground station namely ECC 

centre including Architectural 

Finishing, Water Supply, Sanitary 

Installation & Drainage Works 

from chainage 22902.474 to 

24781.029 for extension of Airport 

Express line from Dwarka sec-21 to 

ECC centre at Dwarka Sec-25. 


to 



to 



to 


Last date of 

submission 




To get detailed information about 

above tender notices, please 

subscribe our PREMIUM 

SERVICES today! 

56

| Metro Rail News | April 2017 | www.metrorailnews.in 

Upcoming Events/Exhibitions 

Event Date Event Name Location 

Aug 14-15, 

2017 

Sept. 5-7, 


Sept. 12-13, 


Sept. 18, 


Sept. 20, 


5th Annual Malaysia Rail - Southeast 

Asia - Next Gen Transport Upgrade 

23rd International Conference on 

Urban Transport and the 

Environment 

HSR Asia 2017 

Future Rail Infrastructure 2017 

UK Rail Industry Forum 

KUALA LUMPUR, 

Malaysia 

ROME, Italy 

KUALA LUMPUR, 

Malaysia 

LONDON, United 

Kingdom 

LONDON, United 

Kingdom 

58

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