Kolkata metro project gets just Rs 475 crore

Fund allocation down from Rs 6,000 cr in FY12, and RS 4,000 cr in FY13

With Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress (TMC) out of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at Centre, Kolkata Metro expansion projects saw a dramatic fall in fund allocation in the railway budget today, indicating an uncertain delay in commissioning of the projects.

As against the budget allocation of Rs 6,000 crore and Rs 4,000 crore in 2011-12 and 2012-13, respectively, all the four metro expansion projects that envisage to add about 85 km to the existing  25.20 km network in the city have been allocated Rs 475 crore in the Rail Budget.

In Pawan Bansal’s speech, only the Dum Dum-Noapara metro link, which is a part of the Noapara-Dum Dum-Barasat project, found a mention, which, according to Bansal, is scheduled to be completed by March 2013. While the entire project cost is estimated at Rs 2,397 crore, the allocation in today’s budget was just Rs 170 crore. In the last budget, the allocation was Rs 1,050 crore, though almost 80 per cent of the fund could not be utilised.

The same has been the case with the other three metro rail projects as well. New Garia-Airport, Joka-BBD Bag, Dum Dum-Baranagr-Dakhineswar-Barrackpore projects got Budget allocation of Rs 45 crore, Rs 250 crore and Rs 10 crore, respectively. In 2012-13, the Budget allocation was about Rs 750 crore, Rs 602 crore and Rs 1,050 crore, respectively. However, as none of the project has seen any significant progress, mostly due to land acquisition problems, the unutilised fund was recalled.

“Though the total cost of all the projects are over Rs 11,000 crore,  funding has not been a problem so far. In 2010-11 and 2011-12 Budgets, Banerjee allocated about Rs 10,000 crore. But, we could not spent the amount. As per the norms, unutilised funds were re-appropriated in other projects by the Railway Board. Of the Rs 4,000 allocated in 2012-13 Budget, Kolkata Metro could utilise only about Rs 761 crore.” said a railway official.

All the four projects were scheduled to be commissioned by 2015-16, which now seems to be a distant dream. Minister of State for Railways, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, however, blames the West Bengal government's non-cooperation for the delays.

 “The problems are related to land acquisition. After the TMC quit the UPA, they (TMC) are not caring about the projects. Without the state government’s operation, it is difficult to implement the projects. This is why fund has gone back,” said Chowdhury.

With the Railways taking over the majority stake in Kolkata Metro Railway Corporation, there is a fear that even its East-West metro, built with the latest technology and having standard gauge track (the existing metro is broad gauge), might meet the fate of the Kolkata metro. The Budget allocation for the project is Rs 100 crore.

This, too, is facing land acquisition problems, as some of the land losers have moved the Calcutta High Court to get back their land.