India’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs announced that within the next few years, the government plans to build new metro lines with a total length of 700 km in 50 cities.
“Metro projects in India are not only perceived as a solution to transport requirements but as a mean to transform cities. As part of Prime Minister’s vision is looking at a situation where 50 Indian cities will have Metro rails,” the minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.
The country’s Metro Policy, announced last year would further boost the development of metro systems in India. “Last year, the Metro Rail policy was announced. This policy enables greater private participation, innovative financing, value capital finance and provides more options of financing by the government for creation of metro rail infrastructure. This will go a long way in further boosting the growth of Metro rail,” he said.
The new projects are also part of “Make in India programme” will contribute to the development of country’s industry and will serve as a leverage for private involvement as many manufacturers, including international companies, have established manufacturing facilities and subsidiaries in India.
Currently, in India, 10 cities have metro system with a total length of 425 km. Delhi has the largest metro system, operating a 231-km network. According to the 2018-2019 draft budget, Delhi will put into operation 114 km of metro lines by 2019.
More information about India’s metro strategy you can find in our February issue.
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