Mumbai, April 19: THE much-debated, much-discussed and much-anticipated Mumbai Metro might just come through.

On Tuesday, E Sreedharan, the managing director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, presented details of the first phase of the project to Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.

‘‘The presentation was very good and we have given it the go-ahead,’’ Deshmukh told Newsline. ‘‘The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is keen on implementing the project and we have sent a letter to the Centre, asking for clearance.’’

Phase One of the ambitious plan includes building three metro lines: Colaba to Charkop, Versova to Ghatkopar and Bandra to Mankhurd. If cleared, the MMRDA will begin work—by 2005 end—on the longest route, the 38.24-km Colaba-Charkop line, at an estimated cost of Rs 8,726 crore.

Eleven of the 36 fully air-conditioned stations will be underground. Initially, four-car, air-conditioned trains that can accommodate 1,500 passengers will run on the line—one train every four minutes.

The cost will be shared by the Central and state governments. ‘‘We still haven’t decided if the money should be collected on a build-operate-and-transfer basis,’’ said an MMRDA official.

In July 2003, MMRDA had asked DMRC to conduct a study for planning a Metro system in Mumbai. Though the study was completed in March 2004, a detailed project report for Phase 1 was only completed recently.

STATIONS on Line 1
Colaba, Nariman Point, Hutatma Chowk, CST-Metro, Phadke Chowk, Chandanwadi, Girgaon, Minerva, Mumbai Central, Gadge Chowk, Mahalaxmi, Worli Hill, Acharya Atre Chowk, Udyog Bhawan, Siddhi Vinayak Temple, Dadar, Shivaji Park, Shitla Devi, Mahim, Bandra, municipal park, Khar, Arya Samaj Chowk, S V Road, Vile Parle, Juhu, JVPD, ESIC Nagar, D N Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Samartha Nagar, Oshiwara, Bangur Nagar, Kasturi Park, Malad, Charkop

umaupadhyaya@expressindia.com