Phase I of the Metro rail project will miss its deadline of September yet again due to several issues like ticket rates and safety clearances. Chief minister said that the issue of determining ticket rates was a serious concern and had to be resolved first as Anil Ambani’s Reliance Infrastructure is seeking a huge hike in the ticket rates to recover costs.
As per the agreement signed between the state government and Reliance Infrastructure in 2006, ticket rates were to be between `6 and `13, but now the company wants to increase the rates in the range of `18-`34. “The amount expected by the company is very high and could not be allowed,” the chief minister said. He was talking with a select group of journalists at his official residence “Varsha” on Friday evening.
When asked about the solution, he said that the state government was left with only two options. “We can negotiate with the company over ticket rates with the help of an arbitrator or to take over the project from the company,” Mr Chavan stated.
The argument made by Reliance Infrastructure was that the project had been delayed by years and hence cost of the project had escalated. To make it financially viable, the company has had to increase prices of the tickets, which the government is not comfortable with.
The other issue that has become reason for delays in the Metro project was the safety clearance. Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) recently started its safety trials, which were to continue for three to six months. As a result, the chief minister was not confident about the safety clearance from the CRS before September this year.
“I can’t say when we can get the safety clearance. After all, safety of the passengers is most important for us. We can bear the delay for another month,” Mr Chavan asserted.