INDIA: Construction work has started on a 26 km elevated metro in the eastern city of Bhubaneswar, following the laying of a foundation stone by the Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik.
He described the 26 km elevated line with 20 stations as Odisha’s flagship project under the 5T (transformational) initiative and the largest ever investment by the state government. The line will run from Trisulia Square to Biju Patnaik International Airport via Nandan Vihar, Bhubaneswar Railway Station and Capital Hospital. Construction is expected to be completed in four years at a cost of Rs62·25bn.
Plans to build a metro network in the Odisha state capital were announced in April 2023, and the first phase was approved by the state cabinet in November.
The state has signed a memorandum of understanding with Delhi Metro Rail Corp to assist with the establishment of Bhubaneswar Metro Rail Corp, and awarded DMRC a Rs3·3bn contract to manage the construction of the first line as a turnkey consultant.
Speaking at the foundation stone laying near Trisulia on January 1, Patnaik announced that he had already commissioned a master plan for expansion of the metro network. Proposed additions would take the line north from Trisulia across the Mahanandi River to Cuttack, and south to Puri, with a second route to serve Khurda in the southwest.
