Centre offers to form JV for Mumbai Metro phase-III

The Centre on Tuesday offered to invest 50% equity in the Rs 10,000-crore Mumbai Metro phase III project. Besides, the Centre will facilitate a concessional loan from Japanese agency and Rs 1,000-crore subsidised debt.

Laying the foundation of Mumbai Metro phase II, union minister for urban development S Jaipal Reddy said, "The Centre is open to enter into a joint venture with the Maharashtra government. The Centre will also release a viability gap funding (VGF) of Rs 1,400 crore for phase III, which is yet to be put for bidding process."

The government has already sanctioned VGF of Rs 471 crore for Mumbai Metro phase I and Rs 1,532 crore for phase II.

The Centre has sanctioned various infrastructure projects worth Rs 13,090 crore. It has also approved the funding for the Rs 5,226-crore Middle Vaitarana irrigation project, which will help tackle the rising need of Mumbai's drinking water, he said. Reddy, however, called upon the state government also to undertake bus rapid transit system for Mumbai in order to ease traffic congestion by avoiding excess use of private vehicles.

Meanwhile, President Pratibha Patil has lauded the metro rail and other projects undertaken in Mumbai to improve public transport system and said such initiatives would ease traffic congestion and lead to a makeover of the city. A consortium comprising Anil Ambani's Reliance Infarstructure and Canada's SNC Lavalin will develop the 32 km-long second line of the Mumbai metro project phase II. Work on the project is likely to start in the next six months and its completion is expected by 2013-14.