GNIDA releases Rs 25 crore as part of its share for extension of Aqua Line Metro
Greater Noida: In a much needed push to the extension of Aqua Line Metro corridor towards Greater Noida's Knowledge Park-V, the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA), on Thursday, released Rs 25 crore as part of its total share for the first phase construction. The move came after Uttar Pradesh government refused to fund the 14.95 km long Metro project and asked both the Noida and Greater Noida authorities to bear the cost of construction and share the amount depending upon the number of metro stations falling under their jurisdiction respectively.
According to the detailed project report (DPR) submitted, the entire corridor of 14.958 km length will have nine Metro stations and will be completed in two phases. This Metro link will branch out from the existing Metro station in Sector 51, Noida, and go towards Greater Noida's Knowledge Park 5. In first phase, the corridor will be developed to 9.6km with two stations falling in Noida at sectors 122 and 123 while three stations will be developed in Greater Noida at Sector 4, Ecotech 12 and Greater Noida Sector 2. The second phase will be a 5.3 km-long corridor with four stations — Greater Noida Sector 3, Greater Noida Sector 10, Greater Noida Sector 12 and Knowledge Park V.
"The total cost for the first phase construction of the project will be Rs 1,064 crore. Both the Greater Noida and Noida authorities will share the cost of construction. Greater Noida authority will fund a larger portion of the corridor which will be 66.75 per cent of the total cost as seven of the total nine stations are falling under GNIDA jurisdiction. Rest 33.25 per cent will be shared by Noida authority," Deep Chandra, Additional Chief Executive Officer, GNIDA told Millennium Post.
"The Greater Noida authority has released Rs 25 crores as first instalment of the total contribution to get the work started at earliest. Further amount will kept on be releasing as the construction work proceeds. We hope if everything goes fine, the first phase of the project will be thrown open to commuters by the end of 2023," the ACEO said.
As per a senior Noida Metro Rail Corporation official, the construction, execution and project contract management will be carried out by the NMRC while Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will assist in designing and preparing the tender documents. NMRC believe that the ridership on the new metro corridor will be much more than the existing 29.7 km long Aqua line as it will pass through much more densely populated areas like Gaur City, Greater Noida West and adjacent villages.
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