Title - RAIL NEWS CENTER: Centre finalizes nominees to director board of Kochi Metro Rail Limited

KOCHI: The Centre has finalized the names of its five nominees to the director board of Kochi Metro Rail Limited while the state will approve its names in the ensuing Cabinet session.

Sudhir Krishna, secretary of the ministry of urban development (MUD), said that the ministry had already communicated the names of the nominees to the state, and that the KMRL board would meet after the state finalized its nominees. The state can nominate five members including the managing director of the board.

As per the communication from the Centre, Sudhir will be the ex-officio chairman of the KMRL Board, while S K Lohia, officer on special duty (Urban Transport) and ex-officio joint secretary at MUD will be a member. Jitendra Thyagi, director (works) in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, D D Pahuja, director (Rolling Stock, Signalling and Electrical) at the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation and A K Gupta, additional member (works) from the Railway Board are the other three nominees. According to sources in the government, the state nominees to KMRL would also be officials and not politicians. Some sections in the government had wanted the KMRL board to be similar to the Cochin International Airport Limited Board, wherein the political executive could find representation. But the state received enough hints from the Centre that this would be difficultto give berth to the political executive in the KMRL Board. This is the case in Delhi and Bangalore Metro as well.

However, transport minister Aryadan Muhammed parried a direct question in this regard. "The names of the state nominees will be announced as soon as the next Cabinet meeting approves it. It will be unfair on my part to comment on it before that.

At present, there are ministers in the KMRL Board. But this need not be the case in the reconstituted board." Sudhir added that no date had been fixed for the maiden meeting of the reconstituted board. "Once the state finalizes their names, we will fix a date. The roadmap for executing the project will also be finalized soon," he said.

There will be a high-powered committee to monitor the execution of Kochi Metro and the cabinet secretary and the state chief secretary will be among its members.

The coverage of the empowered group of ministers in charge of the Delhi Metro project would be extended to Kochi Metro also. According to sources in the Centre, the chief minister would be made a permanent invitee to it.

The Centre has finalised the names of its five nominees to the director board of Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) while the state will approve its names in the ensuing Cabinet session.

Sudhir Krishna, secretary of the Ministry of Urban Development (MUD), told TOI here from New Delhi over telephone that the Ministry had already communicated the names of the Central nominees to the State government, and the KMRL board would meet after the state finalises its nominees.

As per the communication from the Centre Sudhir will be the ex-officio chairman of the KMRL Board, while S K Lohia, Officer on Special Duty (Urban Transport) and ex-officio Joint Secretary at the MUD will be a member.

Jitendra Thyagi, Director (Works) in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), D D Pahuja, Director (Rolling Stock, Signalling and Electrical) at the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited and A K Gupta, Additional Member (Works) from the Railway Board will be the other three nominees of the Centre to the KMRL board.

Sources in the Kerala government said just like the representatives from the Central government, the state nominees to the KMRL would also be officials, and not politicians.

Some sections in the Kerala government had wanted a KMRL board to be similar to the board of the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) where the political executive could find representation. But the state government is reported to have received enough hints from the Centre that it would be difficult to give berth to the political executive in the KMRL Board. Ministers or other political executives do not find representation in the directors boards of the metro rail companies in Delhi or Bangalore.

However, the Kerala Minister Aryadan Muhammed who is in charge of the Railways in the state parried a direct question in this regard. The names of the state government nominees would be announced as soon as the next Cabinet meeting approved it. It would not be fair on my part to comment on it before the Cabinet approves it. Currently there are Ministers in the KMRL Board. But this need not be the case in the reconstituted board. '''

The State can nominate five members to the KMRL board including the managing director.

Sudhir said no date had been fixed for the maiden meeting of the reconstituted KMRL director board. The State government has to finalise their names and then we would a fix a date for the meeting. The roadmap for executing the project would also be finalised soon,'' he said.

There will be a high power committee to monitor the execution the Kochi metro rail project and Cabinet Secretary and the state chief secretary will be among its members. The coverage of empowered group of ministers (EGOM) in charge of the Delhi metro project would be extended to Kochi metro project as well and the Chief Minister would be made a permanent invitee to it, central government sources said.