Saturday 25 June 2016

Delhi Metro phase 4 approval stuck, delay may raise cost by crores

The Delhi Rail Corporation (DMRC) has warned the Delhi government that the cost of phase 4 extension will shoot up by crores if it did not approve the project plan in time.
The DMRC has been seeking the approval for over a year, with the phase-3 construction in its last leg of completion.
But the government wants DMRC to focus on rural areas in phase 4, sources said. “The first detailed project report (DPR) was submitted almost 18 months ago. A few months later, the government asked us to prepare the DPR for a route from Dwarka to Kanjhawla,” said a DMRC official, requesting anonymity.
DMRC told them the route should be included in phase 5 as there was no scope for development on it, he said.
“Since the government insisted, we prepared a DPR for it. The route will have 18 stations. Still, the government hasn’t replied. This will ultimately lead to a rise in the cost,” the official said.
The corporation said contractors, currently engaged in phase-3 work, will move out of the city soon. If the tenders are released after that, they will quote a higher amount to return to the city.
“We must award the contract before work for phase 3 ends to keep the contractor in the city. Once they move out, they will ask us to pay for the transportation of heavy machine they will be carrying,” the official added.
DMRC estimated `55,000 crore as cost for phase-4 construction and an additional `4,000 crore for the new line proposed by the Delhi government. Officials were unable to say by how much the cost will shoot up if the project got delayed, but estimated it would be several crores.