GUWAHATI, Feb 23 - The foundation stone for the eagerly awaited Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) for Guwahati will be laid by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi at Khanapara on February 29.
A State Cabinet meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Gogoi approved the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for MRTS on February 20.
The Cabinet also approved the formation of Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) - Guwahati Metro Rail Corporation Limited (GMRCL) - for implementing the project.
The 203-km metro corridor to be completed in three phases forecasts traffic demand upto 2045. DPR for Phase-I has been prepared for a total length 61.4 km. Under Phase-I, there will be four corridors, namely Dharapur-Narangi (elevated) with a length 22.6 km, MG Road to Khanapara (underground) 10 km, Jalukbari to Khanapara (elevated) 19.4 km and ISBT to Paltan Bazar (elevated) covering a stretch of 9.4 km.
�There will be altogether 54 stations viz., 22 (Corridor-I), 10 (Corridor-II), 14 (Corridor-III) and 8 (Corridor-IV),� an official release stated.
The train with three car racks will have a carrying capacity up to 975 passengers.
The projected cost, including land, is estimated at Rs 18,020 crore.
Both the State and Central governments will share 20% each of the total cost amounting to Rs 3,475 crore. Local bodies will contribute Rs 350 crore (2.01%) towards project completion cost. The remaining project cost of Rs 10,074 crore (57.93%) will be funded through soft loans from funding agencies with guarantee from the Government of India.
GMRCL will be a wholly owned company of the Government of Assam. The company will be converted into a joint ownership (50:50) SPV of the Government of India and Government of Assam. The SPV formed will look after operation and maintenance of the MRTS project.
While the Chief Secretary will be the Chairman of GMRCL, the Chief Executive Officer of GMDA will be its Managing Director.
The project, prepared by RITES Limited, a Government of India Enterprise, will be completed in five years, added the statement.
