JAIPUR: State govt will operate the extended Metro rail lines connecting Badi Chaupar and Transport Nagar, and Mansarovar and 200-feet bypass, in a joint venture with the Union govt, urban development and housing (UDH) department secretary Vaibhav Galriya said Wednesday.
Speaking to TOI, Galriya said talks are underway to firm up the agreement. Once the joint venture comes through, state govt will need to cover only 20% of the project’s construction cost, said officials. While the Union govt will contribute an additional 20% to the project, the remaining 60% cost will be covered through a soft loan, they added.
“All Metro rail across the country operates on this module (joint venture). Jaipur has so far been the only exception,” said a senior JMRC official.
While work on the Line 1D—from Mansarovar to 200-feet Bypass—is on, Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation (JMRC) stopped construction on Line 1C connecting Badi Chaupar and Transport Nagar in Sept.
The second phase of Jaipur metro was funded by a Rs 969 crore loan from Asian Development Bank (ADB), which JMRC has since been struggling to repay.
Meanwhile, Hawa Mahal MLA Balmukund Acharya has written to UDH minister Jhabar Singh Kharra, requesting a realignment of the Metro route from Badi Chaupar to Ramgarh Mod via Amer Road, coinciding with his own assembly constituency.
The move has triggered a political war of words between the ruling BJP and opposition Congress, with Kishanpole MLA Amin Kagzi of Congress threatening to move court against the demand.
JMRC officials said any realignment at this stage will escalate the project cost.
