Bhubaneswar: The Bhubaneswar metro project will be extended till SCB Medical College and Hospital (MCH) in Cuttack city, Housing & Urban Development Minister Krushna Chandra Mohapatra informed on Thursday.
Speaking to mediapersons, the Minister said that the state government has decided to extend the proposed metro train project from Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar to Cuttack Netaji Bus Terminal and SCB MCH. “The metro train service was proposed from Bhubaneswar airport to Trisulia near Cuttack. Will people go to Trisulia? They would instead want this service for bus stands and hospitals. The decision has been taken for the convenience of commuters,” he said.
Mohapatra further stated that a committee has been formed for the proposed Metro project. “The committee is visiting various cities with metro train systems. A new DPR is being prepared. The metro project will be implemented not only with state funds but also with the support of the central government,” he added.
The Minister’s statement has come amid concerns over the fate of phase-I construction of the metro rail project, which was planned across 26-km-long stretch between BPIA and Trisulia at an investment of Rs 6,225 crore, after it was partially halted last month to revise the DPR for facilitating a flyover on the elevated corridor along Jayadev Vihar-Nandankanan stretch.
However, he had hinted at the government’s plans to extend the route of the proposed metro train service in Bhubaneswar to make it viable last month.
The foundation stone for the project was laid at Ratagada Lenka Sahi near Trisulia on January 1 last year.
The Bhubaneswar Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has already started preliminary work on the elevated corridor. The work of the metro depot at Phulapokhari on the city outskirts is also in progress.
In a written statement to the state assembly, Mohapatra had earlier said the metro rail project work was started on November 20, 2023 and was to be completed by 2027. While Rs 210 crore has been allocated for the project in the year 2023-24, another Rs 1,000 sanctioned during the current financial year, of which Rs 393 crore has been spent so far, he said.
