The Madurai Mass Rapid Transit project in Tamil Nadu is expected to have a comprehensive project report (DPR) ready by mid-June.
The consulting contract for DPR preparation was awarded to Aarvee Associates Architects Engineers and Consultants Private Limited.
The state government had floated a tender costing Rs 3 crore for preparing the Detailed Project Report for the Madurai metro in February 2023.
A recent meeting convened at the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) headquarters in Nandanam emphasised the importance of completing the project within the stipulated 75-day timeframe.
Madurai is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, with a history that dates back over 2,500 years. It is the state’s second-largest city in terms of area and third-largest in terms of population.
The Phase-I metro project is planned for a distance of 31 km (from Thirumangalam to Othakadai) with 18 stations, 14 will be elevated and four will be underground.
The metro will have 26 km on an elevated stretch, while the remaining five km will pass through areas near temples on an underground stretch.
The metro’s construction will begin in 2024 and will likely be finished by the end of 2027, according to M A Siddique, the Managing Director of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL).
According to a CMRL release, a stakeholder meeting, chaired by CMRL Managing Director M A Siddique, is scheduled to take place in Madurai shortly, reports Economic Times.
Earlier this month, the Tamil Nadu government, as part of its annual budget, announced the implementation of the metro rail project in Madurai, with an estimated budget of Rs 8,500 crore.
The second phase of the Madurai metro rail project will include the construction of a metro station at Madurai International Airport that will connect the city.
At present, Chennai is the only city in Tamil Nadu that has a metro. Madurai and Coimbatore are the two other cities in which metro services are being planned.