Tamil Nadu seeks Centre's support for Phase II metro rail

Wants govt to review its policy on transfer of railway land

The Tamil Nadu government has requested the Centre to support the Phase II of the Chennai Metro Rail project.

In a memorandum, which chief minister J Jayalalithaa submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, it said the extension of Corridor-I of the metro project up to Thiruvottriyur and Wimco Nagar was pending approval of the Centre. The corridor would cover a distance of 9.051 km at an estimated updated completion cost of Rs 3,253 crore.

Phase-II of the project, covering three corridors with a total length of 76 km, has been identified for implementation and the tentative cost for these corridors will be Rs 36,100 crore.

Interestingly, J Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK when it came back to power in 2011 announced it would implement a Rs 16,650-crore monorail project for Chennai, while downplaying the metro rail project, conceived by the DMK-led government. However, it did not seek any assistance from the Centre for the monorail and instead sought support for the metro Rail.

The state government also asked the Centre to merge the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) with Chennai Metro Rail Limited. It said integration of the MRTS, a project implemented by the Railways, with Chennai Metro Rail was desirable and feasible as the MRTS had been substantially funded by the state government. Such integration would enable effective synergies between various modes of public transport and increase share of public transport. The issue is now under the consideration of the Railway Board.

The state government also asked the Centre to review the policy on transfer of Railway lands for metro rail projects.  Railways charge 99 per cent of the full market value of the land for a 35-year lease and even charge for underground operations under railway land for a public infrastructure project like metro rail.

“This appears unfair. For surface use, either reasonable lease rent should be charged or the land should be permanently transferred on payment of full market value. No charge should be levied for underground use, since surface rights are unaffected,” it stated in the memorandum.