With hardly a few months left for the incumbent government in office, the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) have sped up the process to prepare the detailed project report for the metro rail project in Thiruvananthapuram. It is expected that the DPR could be submitted by the end of January or the first week of February.
Speaking to The Hindu, senior government sources said the DPR of the project is in the finalisation stage, with changes being made to the earlier DPR prepared by the DMRC.
As per the new alignment approved by the State government, the first phase of the project has a length of 31 km with 27 stations, with the metro rail project starting from Pappanamcode and terminating at Eenchakkal. The major revision of the DPR comes in areas like the newly added Technopark stretch in the first phase of the project, which is included considering the persistent demands raised by various stakeholders, along with the new stretch from Pattom to Ulloor via Medical College instead of the Pattom-Ulloor stretch via Kesavadasapuram.
The traffic projections along with the technical feasibility of the newly added stretches will be figured in detail in the revised DPR. Once the DPR is submitted and vetted by the State government, it will be sent for Cabinet approval. Thereafter, it will be submitted to the Union Ministry for Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) for final approval. The DPR is being revised by the DMRC as per the instruction of the KMRL, and the State government sources are hopeful that the revised DPR could be submitted to the Centre before the term of the current government.
Based on the progress in getting final approval from the Centre government, the KMRL can float tenders to engage consultants for executing the project and start land acquisition measures. In between, the KMRL could complete the road widening works along the approved stretch while it will be waiting for the final approval. The flyover at Pattom should also be redesigned, as the alignment favours taking the metro rail project from Pattom to Ulloor via Medical College instead of the previously agreed Pattom to Ulloor stretch via Kesavadasapuram.
The work on the Sreekaryam flyover is in full swing, where no major redesigning is required. At the same time, there would be minor changes in the Ulloor junction with the new proposed line going straight towards the Medical College route, said government sources. The project is expected to cost around ₹8,000 crore for completion, with per kilometre cost coming to ₹250 crore. The funding options, including the agencies from which the loans are to be borrowed, will be fixed after approval from the Centre, said sources. The project was in limbo for quite some time, and now it is redesigned in line with the Metro Rail Policy, 2017, and guidelines of the Central Government, which insisted that North Railway Station and the airport have to be brought into the new alignment.
Published – December 22, 2025 08:43 pm IST
