Work underway on over 1,000 km metro network in 27 cities: PM Modi

New Delhi: Work is in progress on over 1,000 km long metro rail network in 27 cities in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday. He was speaking after performing the ground breaking ceremony of the Ahmedabad Metro Rail Project Phase-II and Surat Metro Rail Project via video conferencing.

"There was a time when there was no modern thinking and policy on metro in our country. The result was that there was a different (type of) metro in each city. There was no uniformity then on the metro trains which started in different cities. There was no integration of metro with other modes of transport back then," he said.

He added that an integrated approach has been now brought in so that various modes of transport, such bus and trains, complement each other rather than running independently. "Both the metro projects in Gujarat would come up at an estimated cost of around Rs 17,000 crore," Modi said.

The metro network in Ahmedabad and Surat will further strengthen the connectivity in the two major business centres of the country, Modi said, adding the government is developing an integrated urban transport system.

He said that the difference between the approach of his government and the previous governments is the (pace of) expansion of the metro rail network across the country. "Before 2014, only 225 km of metro line became operational in 10-12 yrs. In the last six years, over 450 km of metro network became operational," Modi said.

The Ahmedabad and Surat metro projects are expected to provide an environment friendly Mass Rapid Transit System to these cities. Modi said the metro projects are designed keeping in mind both present as well as future needs.

The Ahmedabad Metro Rail Project Phase-II is 28.25 km long with two corridors. While corridor-1 is 22.8 km long and is from Motera Stadium to Mahatma Mandir, corridor-2 is 5.4 km long and is from GNLU to GIFT-City.

An official said that the total completion cost of the Phase-II project is Rs 5,384 crore. Modi inaugurated the 6.5 km stretch of Phase-1 in March 2019. The Surat Metro Rail Project is 40.35 km long and comprises two corridors.

While corridor-1 is 21.61 km long and is from Sarthana to Dream City. Corridor-2 is 18.74 km long and is from Bhesan to Saroli. The completion cost of the project Rs 12,020 crore.

Mentioning various "pro-people" schemes and projects his government has floated or supported, such as Nal Se Jal and Ayushman Bharat, Modi said India is now taking decisions with full confidence and also implementing it.

He said that as many as 21 lakh persons in Gujarat received free treatment under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. "In Gujarat alone, 2.5 lakh houses were built for the poor under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna-Gramin," he said.