Title - Metro-III hits Defence hurdle

Asks UD Ministry to speed up allotment of Defence land for construction.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has hit a hurdle in the construction of Phase-III. Parts of the upcoming 120-km long corridor fall on Defence land and the process of acquisition has been pending for over a year. The DMRC wants Defence land for the construction of a few Metro stations — Lal Qila, IGD Airport, Shankar Vihar and Naraina Vihar. Unable to acquire Defence land, the DMRC has requested the Union Urban Development Ministry to hold inter-ministerial dialogue with the Ministry of Defence to resolve the issue. Sources said on the Central Secretariat to Mandi House to Kashmere Gate corridor, DMRC wants 1,425 sqm of Defence land at the proposed Lal Qila Metro station for construction of entry points and an ancillary building. On the Janakpuri (West) to Botanical Garden line, around 3,365 sqm of Defence land is needed to construct entry and exit points at IGD Airport Metro station. On the same corridor, 1,080 sqm of Defence land is need to construct ramps at the Shankar Vihar Metro station. On the Mukundpur to Shiv Vihar corridor, 3,424.20 sqm Defence land is required to construct a portion of Naraina Vihar Metro station. The DMRC also needs 16,485.19 sqm of Defence land for another Metro station on Phase -III. The Metro needs certain tracts of land temporarily. These are: 54,900 sqm at Naraina for casting yards; 11,766.9 sqm for construction of another Metro station viaduct; and at IGD Airport and Shankar Vihar stations for construction of viaducts and cut and cover technique respectively. Sources said the DMRC has been asking Defence authorities to hand over land needed for Metro stations for more than a year. “The requests were made as early as 2011, but due to some issues, the allotment of land to the Delhi Metro has not been done yet. Since a portion of Defence land falls around the area of construction, the allotment is being sought,” a senior official said. Officials said the Defence officials were insisting on transfer of an equitable pocket of land in lieu of the land to be allotted for Metro construction. The issue was also taken up in the board of directors meeting of the DMRC last month, but no solution could be found. In order to expedite the land allocation, the DMRC last week wrote to the Ministry of Urban Development, requesting them to take up the issue with the Defence Ministry. “We have requested for the Defence land, which is required for the construction of some Metro stations in Phase III. The issue is under discussion,” a Delhi Metro official said.