Centre fast tracks ₹2,100-cr Nashik Metro project

The Nashik Metro project proposal, which entailed an investment of ₹2,100 crore, has reached in the advanced stage of its approval, as the detailed project report (DPR) has been forwarded to the Union ministry of finance and the ministry of railways for mandatory approvals. The Union ministry of housing & urban affairs (MoHUA) has already forwarded the DPR to the ministries concerned. Once the two ministries examine the details of the project and approve it, the proposal will be placed before the Union cabinet for the final nod. The project, known as Metro-Neo, is the first of its kind in the country, as rubber-tyred AC bus coaches would run on the two 32 km long elevated corridors with overhead electric wires and will house 30 stations between the corridors. While part of the project cost would be borne by the Union and the state governments, the other part of the funding would be raised by borrowings. Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation would be the implementing agency for the project. The state government has already approved the DPR before it was sent to MoHUA.