Kerala expects an early decision on Kochi Metro - News

Kerala Sports and Youth Affairs Minister M Vijayakumar today expressed the hope that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would soon take a favourable decision on the proposed Metro Rail project in Kochi.

Talking to reporters here, he said the Planning Commission had raised certain objections to the project insisting that it could be implemented only through Public-Private-Participation (PPP).

Stating that the state government was not opposed to implementing the project under PPP, he said Metro Rail was not suitable for Kochi as it required a lot of space for commercial purpose.

Mr Vijayakumar said he along with Chief Minister V S Achuthandan and Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly Oommen Chandy had met the Prime Minister and submitted a detailed memorandum in this regard.

Mr Vijayakumar, who is also in the charge of Railways, said though the Planning Commission had recommended a viability gap fund for the project, it was not acceptable to the government. He said the state government wanted to implement the project on the lines of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation. However, the Planning Commission had not accepted the proposal, he added.

-- (UNI) -- 19MS34.xml

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