New Delhi: By an uncanny coincidence, even as political corridors were abuzz with speculation about Maharashtra Assembly elections, the Union Cabinet sprang a pleasant surprise by approving two major infrastructure projects worth Rs 15,154.53 crore for Maharashtra.
One of these is the Thane Integral Ring Metro Rail Project which would cover a 29-km distance and cost Rs 12,200.10 crore, the other is an extension of the Pune Metro project which would cost Rs 2954.53 crore. The decision on these projects was taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
About The Thane Integral Ring Metro Rail Project Corridor
The Thane Integral Ring Metro Rail Project corridor will run along the periphery of the west side of Thane city with 22 Stations. The network would be flanked by the Ulhas River on one side and the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, on the other. The cost of the corridor, due to be completed by 2029, would be borne equally by the Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra with part funding coming from bilateral agencies. Some funds would also be raised by selling station names and access rights for the corporate sector, monetization of assets, etc. This project, to be executed by Maha Metro, is looking at a total daily ridership on the metro corridors in the years 2029, 2035, and 2045 at 6.47 Lakh, 7.61 lakh, and 8.72 lakh passengers respectively.
About The Pune Metro Project
The Pune Metro Phase-I project would cover the Swargate to Katraj Underground Line Extension of the existing PCMC-Swargate Metro Line. The new extension would span 5.46 km and would be known as the Line-l B extension. It will have three underground stations and connect key areas such as Market Yard, Bibwewadi, Balaji Nagar, and the Katraj suburbs. This extension will provide connectivity with the Swargate Multimodal Hub, which includes the Metro Station, the MSRTC Bus Stand, and the PMPML Bus Stand. It will also link the southernmost part of Pune, the northern parts, and the eastern and western regions via the District Court interchange station.
The project, slated to be completed by February 2029, would also be funded equally by the Centre and the state government. The Centre appears to have hastened the announcement as the model code of conduct would kick in once the polls for the state are announced. As per projections, the Mahayuti needs to up its game in order to return to power since the MVA alliance parties, which won 30 LS seats, had together polled more votes than it did in over 150 Assembly segments.
