Title - DMRC, KMRL consensus soon Draft MoU To Be Finalized Next Week

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is moving closer to accepting Kerala’s demand for assuming a prominent role in the execution of the Kochi Metro rail project.
    “Now there is a closer alignment between Kerala’s demands and the position of DMRC. We are hopeful of reaching a consensus soon,” Elias George, managing director of the Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL), told TOI over phone from New Delhi.
    He said secretary level discussions for preparing the draft MoU on the terms of engagement of DMRC and KMRL in executing the Metro project were concluded in New Delhi on Monday.
    Chief secretaries of Kerala and Delhi as well as top officials of DMRC and KMRL had taken part in the discussions.
    “The draft would spell out the roles of both DMRC and KMRL in executing the project. It would be finalised later this week or early next week,” George said.
    The draft will be prepared jointly by DMRC MD Mangu Singh and KMRL MD Elias George. KMRL and DMRC would then sign the MoU for executing the project, he said. According to official sources, DMRC has been insisting earlier that KMRL, which has been formed as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the Metro project, should bear the ultimate responsibility for the project
    However, the Kerala government has been demanding that DMRC, which has the track record of implementing Metro rail projects, should play a greater role in the execution of Kochi Metro project as well. The Kerala side felt this would be helpful for the timely execution of the project.
    Meanwhile, the Ernakulam district administration announced that the survey for determining the boundaries of Aluva-Edappally stretch of the national highway as part of the Kochi Metro rail construction would begin on Wednesday.
    The survey would be led by two teams comprising ten members each and will be completed in two weeks, an official release said.
    District collector Sheik Pareeth said land acquisition for the Metro rail project on the MG Road would begin soon. Already 17 plots have been handed over to DMRC on the Banerjee Road as part of the preparatory work.
    The whole area will be about 30 cents, and Rs 17 crore have been handed over already as compensation. Another 30 cents would be acquired from Banerjee Road area within a week, the collector said.