Delhi govt hasn’t agreed to fund RRTS sections: Union Minister

Hardeep Singh Puri, the Union housing and urban affairs minister, informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday that the Delhi government has declined to offer financial support for the Delhi-SNB and Delhi-Panipat Regional Rapid Transit System corridors.

In a written reply to a question, Mr Puri said that in absence of the nod, both corridors have not been approved by the central government and “the question of delay in completion of the corridors does not arise.” The question asked by Rajya Sabha member Kartikeya Sharma was regarding the current status of the Alwar-Delhi-Panipat Rapid Rail Project and whether there is a delay in the completion of the project.

“The Detailed Project Report (DPR) with approval and financial commitment of Government of Haryana for Delhi-Panipat Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor and approval with financial commitment of Government of Haryana and Government of Rajasthan for Delhi-SNB (Shahjahanpur-Neemrana-Behror) RRTS corridor which is part of Delhi-Alwar RRTS corridor, have been received,” Mr Puri said in the written reply.

However, the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD), has not agreed to provide financial support for Delhi-SNB and Delhi-Panipat RRTS corridors, the minister added.

He claims that the Delhi-Faridabad-Ballabgarh-Palwal and Delhi-Bahadurgarh-Rohtak RRTS corridors are the other two RRTS routes that the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) has designated.

The Ministry of Railways has authorised surveys for the Delhi-Agra elevated high speed RRTS and the Delhi-Rewari-Jaipur (speed up to 220 kmph) RRTS, according to Mr. Puri.

The NCRTC, which has been carrying out the RRTS projects, states that the goal of the Delhi-Panipat RRTS corridor is to link Delhi to Haryana towns including Murthal, Gannaur, Samalkha, and Panipat.

The corridor will be 103 kilometres long, with 17 stations, including the Murthal depot station. The corridor will extend from Sarai Kale Khan to Panipat Depot.

According to an NCRTC official, the Delhi-Gurugram-SNB-Alwar RRTS Corridor will pass through industrialised areas of Haryana and Rajasthan.

It is expected to boost the productivity of many commuters travelling to and from Delhi and Gurugram to Manesar, Bawal, and Neemrana.

The corridor’s construction will take place primarily along the edge of the national highway and will be completed in three phases.

Under the first stage, a 107-km stretch from will be constructed from Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to SNB Urban Complex (Shahjahanpur-Neemrana-Behror), just ahead of Bawal (Haryana), enroute touching various regional nodes such as Gurugram, Manesar, Panchgaon, Rewari.

The line would be extended from SNB to Sotanala (33.3km), with Shahjahanpur, Neemrana, and Behror in between, under the second phase. SNB to Alwar (58 km) extension is proposed under the third phase.