PM To Inaugurate Work On Agra Metro Phase-I On Dec 7

Prime minister Nardendra Modi will, on December 7, 2020, virtually inaugurate the construction of the first phase of the Agra Metro Rail project, a move that would provide a new mode of connectivity to a city most frequented by tourists from across the world as the host of the iconic Taj Mahal.

Union housing minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath will also attend the event that will be held at 15 Battalion PAC parade ground in Agra.

If all goes as planned, services on the 29.4-km Sikandra-Taj East Gate corridor, which will connect all major tourist hubs in the city through a metro link, is expected to start in December 2022.

The arrival of a mass transit rapid system will not only make commuting for over 26-lakh city dwellers much easier but also greatly benefit more than 60 lakh tourists who visit Agra every year.

The Sikandra-Taj East Gate corridor will have six stations, including Taj East Gate, Basai and Fatehabad Road, the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Jama Masjid.

"The Agra metro will provide an environment-friendly, comfortable and hassle-free means of public transport and will also make it easy to travel to world famous tourist destinations like the Taj Mahal and Agra fort," Kumar Keshav, managing director, Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC), said. According to Keshav, it is a major challenge for the team to construct a metro corridor in the heart of the busy city like Agra and make it available within the stipulated time frame.

Modi laid the foundation stone of the Agra Metro project virtually in May 2019. The total estimated cost of the Metro project is Rs 8,379.62 crores and it was projected to be completed within five years.

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UP Allocates Rs 644 Cr For Kanpur, Agra Metro Projects

Plans to build Metro networks in two key cities of Uttar Pradesh have firmed up with the state government allocating Rs 358 crore for the Kanpur Metro Rail Project and Rs 286 crore for the Agra Metro while presenting its Budget for 2020-21 on February 18. Earlier, the state government launched the civil construction work for Phase-I of the Kanpur Metro project on November 15, 2019.

In March 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the Metro projects in Kanpur as well as Agra to boost connectivity in two major cities in India's most populous state. While Agra is one a world-renowned tourist spot, Kanpur is an equally well-known industrial hub. The two projects had received the Union Cabinet's approval in February.

In January 2019, the Uttar Pradesh government had decided to start Metro services in Agra, Kanpur and Meerut cities by 2024 at a total estimated cost of Rs 43,800 crore.

All You Need To Know About Agra, Kanpur Metro Projects

Agra Metro: To be built an estimated cost of Rs 8,380, the Agra Metro project will have two corridors, running through the heart of the city and proving connecting to all key points, including the Taj Mahal, the Agra Fort, Inter State Bus Terminus, the Raja ki mandi railway station, the Agra Medical Collage, the Agra Cantt, Sanjay Palace, Sikandara, etc.

The 29.6-kilometre corridor between Sikandara to Taj East Gate will have 13 stations, six elevated and seven underground while the 15.40-km Agra Cantt to Kalindi Vihar corridor will have 14 stations, all of these elevated.

While part of the monetary burden for building the project would be shared between the Centre and the state government, part of it would be taken as a loan from global funding agencies. The state government has already allocated Rs 175 crore for the project.

Kanpur Metro: To be developed at an estimated cost of over Rs 11,076 crore, the Kanpur Metro project will also have two corridors, one running between the city’s Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) to Naubasta and the other running between the Agricultural University and Barra-8.

The nearly 24-km IIT-Naubasta corridor will have 22 stations, 14 elevated and eight underground. The 8-km Agricultural University- Barra-8 corridor on the other hand will have eight stations, four elevated and four underground.

The Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation will have the responsibility to carry out the project, and will be rechristened as the Uttar Pradesh Metro rail Corporation for that purpose.

The funding method of the Kanpur Metro project would be similar as the Agra Metro project.