RailEnquiry

GUWAHATI: Assam chief minister TarunGogoi on Thursday said the Centre has accepted the state government's Rs 14,000-crore proposal for a metro rail project in the city here and it has already sanctioned Rs 25 crore for carrying out the feasibility study.All metro rail projects have to be cleared by the Centre and are financed jointly by the Centre and the state government. The state government's stake is about 50 per cent. As a thumb rule, the cost of construction of 1 km of underground metro track is about Rs 300 crore while that of an overhead track is about Rs 200 crore per km.

Gogoi, who also holds the finance portfolio, had proposed Rs 1800 crore from the state government in the metro rail project in his current budget speech.

Gogoi said the first phase will cover 65 km connecting Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (LGBI) airport in the western boundary of the city to Narengi in the easternmost part. The project will be executed in three phases, he added.

"The second phase of the project will cover the stretch between Paltan Bazar and Khanapara area, while the third phase proposes to cover the stretch between Khanapara and Jalukbari area," Gogoi said, hoping that it will help in easing out the problem of traffic congestion in the city.

"Once the detailed project report (DPR) is prepared, the exact time schedule for completion of the project will be known. Our focus would be to ensure the execution of the project at the earliest. In Assam, it may take more time as we have less number of working days because of rain," he said.

He added that his government was also laying stress on developing a river transport system in and around the state. "We have been neglecting the river route as a system of cheap transportation," he said.

In order to contain the swelling population of the city, Gogoi said his government is also planning to develop at least two to three satellite townships.

Sources said the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has already identified an area of 80 sq km near Narengi for building a township and is looking for more suitable land on the western outskirts of the city around Palashbari and Chaygaon.