The 118000 project of linking the capital city of Trivandrum with Mangalore with a 560 km long high-speed rail service, which could cover the distance in less than three hours, is scheduled to be inaugurated on April 13, 2013. The first phase from Trivandrum to Kochi would be completed in five years; the entire length would be commissioned by March 2020. The all-party meeting convened by the Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, gave their consent to go ahead with the project. Delhi Metro Railway Corporation (DMRC) was entrusted with the task of preparing a feasibility report about the proposed project and the reported submitted by DMRC came out with a positive conclusion. Around 1000 acres of land would have to be acquired for building the line, with a total of around 4500 families needing to be evicted. The specially designed tracks would cost a fortune to build, for which loan could be raised from Japan International Cooperation Agency, with an interest rate of 1.5%. DMRC has already been asked to start working on a detailed report about the project. Steps would be immediately initiated for quick acquisition of the land needed for the project. The Trivandrum - Mangalore high-speed rail link would be the first undertaking of this magnitude in the nation. The government has appointed Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) as the Nodal Agency to the project. The Chief Minister also informed the meeting that the 20 crore that was allocated for the project in the 2009 budget has been transferred to KSIDC.
15 February 2012
High Speed Rail Link: One Step Closer To Reality
The 118000 project of linking the capital city of Trivandrum with Mangalore with a 560 km long high-speed rail service, which could cover the distance in less than three hours, is scheduled to be inaugurated on April 13, 2013. The first phase from Trivandrum to Kochi would be completed in five years; the entire length would be commissioned by March 2020. The all-party meeting convened by the Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, gave their consent to go ahead with the project. Delhi Metro Railway Corporation (DMRC) was entrusted with the task of preparing a feasibility report about the proposed project and the reported submitted by DMRC came out with a positive conclusion. Around 1000 acres of land would have to be acquired for building the line, with a total of around 4500 families needing to be evicted. The specially designed tracks would cost a fortune to build, for which loan could be raised from Japan International Cooperation Agency, with an interest rate of 1.5%. DMRC has already been asked to start working on a detailed report about the project. Steps would be immediately initiated for quick acquisition of the land needed for the project. The Trivandrum - Mangalore high-speed rail link would be the first undertaking of this magnitude in the nation. The government has appointed Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) as the Nodal Agency to the project. The Chief Minister also informed the meeting that the 20 crore that was allocated for the project in the 2009 budget has been transferred to KSIDC.
