Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Kerala Backs New Thiruvananthapuram Metro Route as KMRL Begins DPR Rewrite

Estimates for Union clearance diverge sharply, from a few months per KMRL to at least a year per a DMRC official.

Overview

  • The state cleared Phase I from Pappanamcode to Eenchakkal covering 31 km with 27 stations, with the project pegged at about ₹8,000 crore.
  • KMRL has started revising the DMRC-prepared DPR and says it will finish in roughly six weeks before seeking state cabinet approval and then central clearance.
  • KMRL projects that if approvals come in a few months, construction could begin in about six months and the first phase could be built in around 30 months.
  • A senior DMRC-linked official told The Hindu that Union approval for a fresh DPR will take at least a year and that execution thereafter would need about five years.
  • The working finance plan is 60% via loans with Centre and State contributing 20% each, the state currently favors elevated stretches given underground costs near ₹550 crore per km, and the revised DPR will settle land needs, a Pattom–Murinjapalam flyover redesign, and whether heritage areas like MG Road get an underground segment.