Rail link between Delhi, Panipat, Alwar and Meerut gets ₹659 crore

high-speed rail link, connecting the national capital region (NCR) cities of Delhi, Alwar, Meerut and Panipat, got a booster shot of ₹659 crore in the Union Budget 2018-19.

“The phase 1 of the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) has been allocated ₹659 crore in todays' budget,” said a spokesperson for the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) — the agency which is implementing the project.

Three NCRTC is constructing three corridors — Delhi-Meerut, Delhi-Alwar and Delhi-Panipat — connecting the three cities with high speed railway. The first phase of RRTS consists of three prioritized corridors. Out of the three, Delhi – Ghaziabad – Meerut corridor will be the first one to be executed and pre-construction work has already been initiated.

“The travelling time between Meerut and Delhi will become less than an hour. It will be fast, high capacity, comfortable, and commuter-friendly service connecting regional nodes of NCR to Delhi,” the spokesperson said.

The cost of Delhi-Meerut corridor is pegged at Rs 32,000 crore and 70% of the amount has to be financed through loan. The state governments (Delhi and UP) will share 15% costs each but since majority of the portion is in UP, they will pay the major share.

NEWDELHI:A

METRO

For the expansion of Metro projects across the country, ₹14,314 crore has been allocated. Delhi Metro has, however, got only ₹50 crore for projects in the NCR. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) got ₹150 crore in the last financial year.

The overall fund allocation has reduced compared to ₹17,810 crore that were allocated for the expansion of Metro train project in the country in the last fiscal.