Maharashtra Govt approves DPR of Rs 333 crore Broad Gauge Metro in Nagpur

Nagpur, India (Urban Transport News): Maharashtra Government cabinet today gave its approval of the detailed project report (DPR) of the proposed 268.63 km Broad Gauge Metro Network in Nagpur with an estimated cost of Rs 333.60 crores.

The Broad Gauge Metro would also act as feeder service to Nagpur Metro services too and help in increasing its ridership. The international funding agency Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) has agreed to finance this project to the tune of Rs 305.20 crores of the total project cost of Rs 333.60 Crore.

Maharashtra Government will provide a total of Rs 21.30 crore and the rest project cost will be funded by the Central Government through Indian Railways.

Union Road Transport & Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari has thanked Maharashtra Government for clearing the project. “It would provide fast connectivity to people living in towns and villages near Nagpur and help in the growth of the city,” said Gadkari in a press statement.

Dr. Brijesh Dixit, Managing Director of Maha Metro said that the BG Metro would reduce dependency on private vehicles and transportation services. “This would reduce traffic congestion on the roads, consequently accidents and pollution,” he added.

"The Maharashtra Cabinet, today, cleared the broad gauge (BG) Metro proposal of  Maha Metro. The ₹333.60 Crore project aims at providing high-speed connectivity to satellite towns around Nagpur – Narkhed, Wardha, Bhandara and Ramtek. With the state cabinet clearing the proposal, it would now be sent to Central Government for its approval. Once implemented, Metro coaches would run on Indian Railways’ track," said the official release.

In November 2019, the Railway Board, Ministry of Railways under the Government of India had approved the detailed project report (DPR) of the proposed Broad Gauge Metro Project. The DPR of this project is prepared by the Gurugram based consultancy firm Urban Mass Transit Company Limited.

Interacting with the media persons on Wednesday, Dr. Brijesh Dixit, Managing Director of Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (Maha Metro) said, “We had made a presentation before the railway minister on October 9. The Board has cleared it in seven weeks, for which we are grateful.”

After approving the project, the railway board has asked zonal offices of Central Railway (CR) and South-Eastern Central Railway (SECR) to draft concession agreements for the proposed Broad Gauge Metro in Nagpur. “We will sign these agreements with the two agencies. Our officers will soon go to Mumbai and Bilaspur to help their officials in preparing the agreements. Once the agreements are signed, we will purchase the coaches,” said Dr. Dixit.

The Broad Gauge Metro will connect four towns viz. Wardha, Bhandara Road, Ramtek and Narkhed to Nagpur. The distances and stations on these routes are Wardha (78.8 km, 12 stations), Narkhed (85.53 km, 11 stations), Ramtek (41.6 km, 8 stations) and Bhandara Road (62.7 km, 11 stations).

The travel time between Nagpur and these towns will be Wardha 1.10 hours, Narkhed 1.15, Ramtek 1 hour and Bhandara Road 55 minutes. The cost of the Metro tickets will be 1.38 times the railway fare. Fare structure will be: The minimum fare for distances up to 5-km will be Rs 20 while that above 70-km will be Rs 90. Monthly pass tickets will range from Rs 400 to Rs 1,800.

The expected ridership of the Broad Gauge Metro in 2021 on the various routes are - Wardha 5,669; Narkhed 2,616; Ramtek 3,929 and Bhandara Road 2,556. The total ridership is 14,700.

For more details about the project, please explore the Nagpur Broad Gauge Metro page of Urban Transport News.