Surveys not complete, DPR of Metro link between Delhi and Greater Noida delayed

The detailed project report of 36km Metro line from Greater Noida to New Delhi, being readied by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), has been delayed as the Delhi Metro has sought more time to complete survey work. The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) on Wednesday said the DPR is now expected to be ready by June 2023.

The Yamuna authority had paid 1.87 crore to DMRC in October 2022 to prepare and submit the detailed project report in six months.

“The DMRC has informed us that it will take some more time to complete the survey work and hence it would submit the DPR only by end-June. The DMRC needs to carry out two more surveys to complete the DPR,” said Arun Vir Singh, chief executive officer, Yeida.

Yeida needs this Metro line to provide connectivity between Indira Gandhi International Airport and Jewar, where the Noida international greenfield airport is being built. The phase one of the airport is expected to get functional by end-2024, said officials.

Yeida officials said the Metro link is being built in two parts — a 36.36km Metro link between the New Delhi station and Greater Noida’s Knowledge Park-2 and a 35.64km link from Knowledge Park-2 and Jewar.The Yamuna authority had already approved the detailed project report of 35.64km link between Jewar and Knowledge Park-2 and sent it to the Uttar Pradesh government for approval in August 2022, said officials.

What remains is the DPR for the link from New Delhi to Greater Noida. “Once the DPR of the 36.36km Metro link between Greater Noida’s Knowledge Park-2 and New Delhi is ready, we will send it to the Uttar Pradesh government and then the central government for requisite approvals before commencing work at the site,” said Singh.

But Delhi Metro is yet to complete the “original destination survey” and ”geo-technology survey” to finalise the proposed station locations, said Yeida officials. These surveys will help in identifying suitable locations for the proposed Metro stations, said officials.“Once these surveys are completed, the DPR can be readied,” said Singh.

“Once both DPRs are approved, work can start on a dedicated Metro corridor that will be 72km long and provide direct connectivity from Jewar to IGI airport, via the airport line. We need to provide multimodal connectivity from Jewar airport to IGI airport and other important NCR cities,” said Singh.

On September 3, 2021, Yeida signed a memorandum of understanding with DMRC to prepare a feasibility report for a Metro corridor to provide direct connectivity between Indira Gandhi International Airport and the upcoming Noida international airport in Jewar, said officials.

The 72km Metro link will roughly require a funding of 13,000 crore. The funding pattern will be finalized at a later stage, said officials.