Metro will chug come what may, says CM

Metro will chug come what may, says CM
The Times of India

Bangalore: The Metro Rail is going to chug. Brushing aside all reservations raised by his father, H D Deve Gowda, CM Kumaraswamy on Tuesday gave the green signal to the project.

After a meeting with Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) MD K N Shrivastava here, a fortnight after taking a ride on the Delhi Metro, Kumaraswamy said: “I have instructed our officials to go ahead with the project. I have told them it should not be a matter of months but a matter of days before it takes off.’’

To stamp his approval, the CM will inaugurate the BMRCL office at KH Road on March 15. On Gowda’s contention that the cost — 6,800 crore — is prohibitive, he said: “The Centre is giving us Rs 1,600 crore; the state is putting in the same amount. The rest will be raised from the Japan Bank of International Cooperation as loan.’’

Asked about Gowda’s objection to the fare the public will have to pay in Metro, he said: “It is a delicate matter, I don’t want to comment. But I’ve taken a decision that the Metro is necessary for Bangalore.’’

He reiterated the government’s stand that Monorail and other options of mass transit are also on the anvil. “In areas where the Metro is not planned, we can have Monorail also.’’

The Group of Ministers headed by Sharad Pawar is looking into the legal cover and the type of gauge the Bangalore Metro will have.
The CM said: “I am not aware of what the GoM has decided.’’