High-level meet to put Kochi metro on fast track.

A high-level meet to be chaired by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy soon will try to resolve the latest bottlenecks in the implementation of the Kochi Metro Rail project, including the dispute between the Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) and St. Albert’s College over land usage and the remaining land acquisition hurdles before the State's ambitious venture.

The work on Kochi Metro’s International Stadium station and adjacent pillars had been affected after the GCDA insisted on the State government handing over land near the first Goshree bridge to compensate for the 65 cents it had to give to St. Albert’s College in the stadium.

N. Venugopal, Chairman of the GCDA, said on Wednesday that the authority was ready to hand over the land to St. Albert’s but on a condition that the government should give GCDA 72 cents near CMFRI located next to the first Goshree bridge.

'We will also bring the unilateral stance adopted by the college authorities in this issue before the Chief Minister at the meeting,' he said. KMRL sources said other issues to be discussed at the meeting included the deadlock over the transfer of 17.31 acres owned by the Public Works Department at Kakkanad; approval for the water transport project for funding from KfW, the German funding agency; and approval of the Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) Act.

Mr. Chandy will also unveil the interior and exterior designs of Kochi Metro coaches along with the new brand identity of KMRL at CIAL recently.


THE HINDU