EGoM on Bangalore Metro to give report within two weeks

EGoM on Bangalore Metro to give report within two weeks
The Indian Express

NEW DELHI, JANUARY 11: The UPA government has decided to constitute an Empowered Group of Ministers headed by Sharad Pawar to resolve technical differences between the Urban Development and Railway ministries in a bid to expedite a mass transport system for Bangalore and other mega cities.

The EGoM is expected to give its recommendations to the government in two weeks’ time, following which the Rs 7,000 crore Bangalore Metro project proposal will be put before the Cabinet. It has been asked to decide who would run the metro: the state or the Railways. If the panel decides it is the state, then it is also charged with deciding who would be responsible for the safety of passengers. Finally, the EGoM will also decide whether the system will employ the standard gauge or the broad gauge.

The decisions of the EGoM will be applicable to all future metro systems, including that of Mumbai. ‘‘The EGoM will decide once and for all, what system has to be followed by the metro systems in the country,’’ said an official. The EGoM includes Laloo Prasad Yadav (Railways), S. Jaipal Reddy (Urban Development), P Chidambaram (Finance) and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

Karnataka CM Dharam Singh and Managing Director of Bangalore Mass Rapid Transit Ltd (BMRTL) K N Shrivastava had met PM Manmohan Singh yesterday seeking his help to hasten the project, long delayed, first over the Metro vs Monorail debate, and then over the gauge. The project had been cleared by the Public Investment Board .

The BMRTL was pushing for standard gauge, while the Railways has insisted on broad gauge, citing the benefits of one gauge and the possibility of an inter-city linkage in the future.

‘‘We want standard gauge since that is followed in 95 to 98 per cent railways all over the world. It is easier to buy things off-the-shelf from anywhere in international market, and also it can take sharper bends in the track,’’ argued a senior BMRTL official.

Railway sources pointed out to the Sky Bus project in Goa, built on standard gauge. With the Railways Ministry refusing to take responsibility for the safety of passengers, the project was abandoned after two mishaps during the trials itself.