MUMBAI: Monday dealt another blow to the city's Metro rail dream. Hurdles in the way of constructing Mumbai's first upcoming Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar (VAG) Metro rail corridor seem to be mounting with it showing no signs of completion yet.
WR has refused to offer four hours of train-blocks, for 57 days, for the construction of a crucial Metro rail bridge above the tracks between Andheri (E) and Andheri (W).
According to WR officials, a four-hour block for 57 days as asked by the MMRDA at Andheri station would not be feasible. Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd (MMOPL), a special agency set up under the leadership of Reliance Infrastructure and MMRDA is building the 12- km long Metro line costing around Rs 2,500 crore.
Chief PRO, WR, Sharat Chandrayan said that three months ago, the MMRDA had asked for a two-and-a-half hour block. However, a detailed planned was not attached. "The details were all piecemeal. Now they have asked (unilaterally) for a four-hour block again without a scheme in place," he said.
He added that trains at Andheri do not run between 1:45 and 3:45 am. WR is not ready to cancel trains. "Not running trains for four hours cannot be absorbed by the city. We will examine the proposal and request them to give us a complete scheme so that we can consider it in totality," he said. The approval of the design for the Metro bridge to be constructed between Andheri east and west, near the railway station came after almost a year of follow-up. MMOPL has suitably changed its design to match the standards approved by the railways.
MMRDA recently extended the deadline for completion of the VAG corridor from December 2010 to August 2011. MMRDA s sources and those who are closely monitoring the work, said the construction of the Metro line may not be completed by the new deadline of August 2011 as only four to five stations, out of the 12 stations, are near completion half-complete of the total 12 stations to come up on the corridor. At a few places, even the pillars and girders have not been constructed as yet.
Meanwhile, MMRDA spokesman Dilip Kawathkar said that there would not be any delay beyond August 2011. in commissioning the Metro line as more than 80 % of construction work has been completed. "Railways should try to come up with a solution so that the project is completed fast in the interest of Mumbaikars," he added.
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