Kochi Metro will be ready on time: Chandy

The first train from the Rs 5,180 cr project will likely run on December 31, 2015

The Rs.5,180 Kochi metro project that is expected to ease commuters' woes in Kerala's commercial capital will be completed in "a timebound manner", Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said on Monday.

Chandy was visiting the construction site before heading to the board meeting of Kochi Metro Rail Limited.

"The work is progressing well and would be completed in a time bound manner," he said.

The project, which will run 25 km from Alwaye to Petta, is being managed by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation with its principal advisor E. Sreedharan overseeing it.

According to Chandy, the first train will likely run December 31, 2015, a little over a year from now. 

The central government's share of funds is close to Rs.1,000 crore, with the rest coming by way of loans which the state government will avail from funding agencies.

This project was first broached in 2005 when Chandy was the chief minister but it later went into limbo, only to return when he reassumed office in 2011.