Yogi gives nod for second metro corridor in Lucknow

In a major push to the infrastructure development in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has given his nod to the construction of the East-West Corridor of Lucknow Metro from Charbagh to Vasant Kunj via Chowk.

Yogi also instructed officials to extend the currently operating North-South corridor in the city up to IIM on one side and SGPGI on the other.

At present, the 22-km Red Line is operational between Amausi and Mushi Pulia. The Charbagh-Vasant Kunj route will be the second corridor in the city.

“Private sector is keen on participating in metro projects. The state government should create a scope for public-private partnership (PPP) to build and expand the network,” the Chief Minister said, according to the government spokesman.

Additional chief secretary of housing and urban planning department, Nitin Ramesh Gokarn, said: “Since we have received the principal approval from the chief minister, in the next few days, the DPR would be sent for cabinet approval and from there it would be sent to central government.

“We strongly believe that the project will get a green signal, as it will be a gamechanger in the public transport system of the state capital.”

The East-West corridor will pass through one the most densely populated areas of Old City. Last year, the Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) had prepared a revised detailed project report (DPR) of the Charbagh-Vasant Kunj Blue Line corridor.

The revised cost of the project was estimated to be Rs 5,880 crore which was Rs 3,786 crore in 2019 and then escalated to Rs 4,264.89 crore due to rising inflation.

“The DPR has been also upgraded by including 750 DC (direct current) traction system which is being followed in Kanpur and Agra Metro project mainly due to severe OHE (overhead electric cable) flash problem which occurs due to metallic wire (manjha) used in flying kites. Such manjha often creates a huge problem in commercial operations of the metro, as it causes power failure when tangled with OHE,” said an official.

The total route length of the East-West corridor from Charbagh to Vasant Kunj will be 11.1 km, including elevated length of 4.286 km and underground length of 6.879 km.

The estimated time of completion of this proposed corridor is five years.

The UPMRC has recently conducted the techno-feasibility studies on six routes in the city -11.03-km route between Charbagh and SGPGI, 21.58 km route from IIM, Lucknow to Rajajipuram, 8.78-km Indira Nagar-Ekana Stadium route, 6.54-km route from Munshi Pulia to Jankipuram, 19.60-km route between Ekana Stadium and Amausi Airport, and 12.43-km Sachivalaya-CG City South route.

The Chief Minister has also advised officials to encourage commercial activities in the Metro Rail complex.