New Delhi, Dec 30: 2013 saw the Urban Development Ministry launching major initiatives in urban transport and other areas besides the collapse of the country’s first-ever public private partnership in the metro sector – the Delhi Airport link.
The most prominent among the new initiatives was creation of a National Capital Region Transport Corporation that would set up three Regional Rapid Transit System corridors to link Delhi with towns of Alwar, Meerut and Panipat.
As the year begin, the UD ministry was still trying to ensure that the high-profile Airport Metro line, which had stopped operations after developing faults, resumes once again.
On January 22, the line began functional but a few months later in June the partnership between Reliance Infra and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) broke down after the former refused to run it. The UD ministry intervened and DMRC took over the line.
However, the knotty issue related to payment of the Airport line debt continues to remain unresolved and the Urban Development ministry has approached the Group of Ministers on Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) in search of a solution.
The ministry also had to form another committee to affix the blame for the shutdown of services on the line, after a two-member inquiry committee set up by it submitted its report.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) also questioned the PPP model of Delhi’s airport metro link in its report tabled in the Parliament. In its report, the auditor claimed key guidelines were flouted in implementation of the project and accused DMRC of not doing enough to protect financial interests.
If troubles over the airport line were not enough, the UD ministry had to form another committee in the wake of allegations levelled by some bidders that tender process followed by DMRC was arbitrary.
While the UD ministry was busy trying to clear the messy issues related to the Airport line, work continued on Metro projects in cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kochi, Kolkata and Mumbai in 2013.
The ministry was also approached by the Chandigarh Administration and the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh for Metro Rail projects.
The ministry also got the cabinet nod to a proposal related to the metro according to which projects can get faster land transfers from Central Government departments as metro companies will be treated under rules that are applied in the case of Central Public Sector Undertakings.
The cabinet also gave its nod to continue the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) to sanction new projects till March 2014. While the duration of the first phase of JNNURM was increased, the UD ministry also worked to finalise the contours of the next phase of the scheme.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved a proposal for funding procurement of up to 10,000 buses for urban areas under JNNURM during 2013.
During the year the districts of Bhiwani and Mahendragarh in Haryana and Bharatpur in Rajasthan were made part of the National Capital Region (NCR).
The DDA also finalised a new policy for which allows land owners to pool in their land and get residential projects developed.
To meet shortage of housing for Government officers in the capital, the UD ministry approved and sanctioned work in several areas including a project related to building over 5,000 houses as part of a 240 acre residential project in Ghitorni in southwest Delhi.
To meet the demand for housing of Government officers and those working with PSUs and tribunals, the ministry also initiated redevelopment of six colonies in the capital.
While NBCC is rebuilding Netaji Nagar, Kasturba Nagar and Tyagraj Nagar, CPWD is redeveloping Sarojini Nagar, Mohammedpur and Sriniwaspuri. The ministry also issued advisories to states on various subjects including on enhancing safety features in buses to ensure safety of women. (PTI)
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