Thiruvananthapuram: In a boost to Kerala's efforts to fast-track infrastructure development, the Centre has given the green signal to its ambitious high speed rail corridor project, linking the entire stretch from Kasargode in the north to the state capital in the south.
At a high-level meeting convened at the Prime Minister's
Office in Delhi last evening, the state was asked to draw up a
Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the scheme, official sources
here said.
Pulok Chatterjee, Principal Secretary to the Prime
Minister, Kerala Chief Secretary P Prabhakaran and Managing
Director of Infrastructure Kerala Ltd T Balakrishnan were
involved in the discussions.
The meeting was convened in response to Chief Minister
Oommen Chandy's plea to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking
the Centre's support for the mega project.
The 580-km track which will reduce end-to-end running time
to two to three hours, is expected to cost Rs one lakh crore.
Though the finance pattern of the project is yet to be
finalised, it is likely to be a Private-Public Partnership'
venture with technical and financial collaboration of the
Indian Railways, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and
central and state governments, sources said.
The green signal to the high speed rail project has come
close on the heels of the Kochi Metro Rail, the basic works
for which has already begun.
On coming to power in May 2011, the UDF Government headed
by Chandy unveiled an ambitious development agenda with its
focus on infrastructure development.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, January 21, 2012, 14:01