Chandy to hold high-level meet on Oct 26

The meeting would evaluate the Kochi metro rail progress and issues hindering its progress

Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy will hold a high-level meeting on October 26 to evaluate the progress of Kochi metro rail and some pending issues hindering its progress.

The meeting, to be held in Kochi, would be attended by Union minister of state for Food, KV Thomas, and state ministers-- Aryadan Muhammed, K Babu, Ibrahim Kunju and Manjalamkuzhi Ali among others.

At the meeting, the chief minister will address some of the long-pending issues relating to the development of Thammanam- Pulleppady road, widening of Vyttila-Petta road and shifting of pipelines at Sahodaran Ayyappan road, all part of metro works.

Works on the MG Road are not in full swing as the shifting of water supply and electricity lines has been slow.

Issues pertaining to the creation of Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority for Kochi; augmenting water transportation in the city under JNNURM, formation of special purpose vehicle for it; an urban transport system in the Greater Kochi area; reconstruction of south railway over bridge, are also expected to come up.  

"We're looking forward for the meeting and expect some key decisions would be taken which will have very significant impact on the city's transport infrastructure by the time Kochi metro is commissioned," said Elias George, managing director, Kochi Metro Rail Ltd.