Centre sanctions Rs 25 cr for Guwahti Metro rail feasibility study: Gogoi

Guwahati: Guwahati will soon have Metro rail with the Centre approving Assam government’s proposal for the mass transit system, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said today. “The government of India has accepted our Metro rail proposal and we have been informed yesterday that Rs 25 crore have been sanctioned for feasibility study of the project,” Gogoi told reporters in Guwahati.[caption id=“attachment_949229” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi. AFP[/caption] “The total cost of the project will be Rs 1400 crore on a rough estimate and it will cover a total distance of 65 km. This system will ease the traffic problem in the city, he said. “In the first phase the area to be covered will be from LGB Airport to Narengi, in the second phase from Paltan bazar to Khanapara and the third phase will be from Khanapara to Jhalukbari”, he said. The project would take five to six years to complete, but might require even more time due to the frequent rains here, he said. The mass rapid transport system would also be extended to Guwahati’s neighbouring areas, including Rangia, Mirza, South Bank, he said. Gogoi’s government was also keen to develop the river transport system by setting up a corporation if necessary as it daily transported a large number of passengers and goods. For easing the congestion away from Guwahati, he said the Urban Planning Institute in Ahmedabad was engaged to do a study on it so that development works could be undertaken down to the block level where people would get employment and would not have to migrate to Guwahati. PTI