Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation will be receiving a sum of ₹250 crores from the Maharashtra government to execute the ‘Aqua Line’ Project. As per reports, the state has allocated a budget of ₹500 crores to the Metro Line 3 project in this year’s budget. This is the second tranche of that amount. The first instalment of ₹250 crores was sanctioned earlier this year in January. This special resource has been provided to boost the construction of the 35-km long corridor within the tabled deadline.
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Mumbai Metro Line 3 is part of the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited's (MMRCL) ambitious metro network of 10 metro lines in Mumbai. Stretching from Aarey Colony to Navy Nagar, this corridor is being built as an underground stretch along the Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ route at a 1:1 fund ratio between centre and state. About 50% of the project taxes are to be paid by the Union, while the cost of land acquisition along with expenditure for relief and rehabilitation is to be funded by the state.
With this understanding, the state’s share of spend lands somewhere near ₹2,421 crores approximately, of which around ₹1,926 crores was paid to MMRCL until January this year. With the latest trench, the figure has boosted up to ₹2,176 crores, nearing the budget limit.
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Initially, the Metro Line 3 was tabled to be commissioned in 2019, however, the construction of tunnels and stations was delayed owing to the political slug between centre and state and further the COVID-19 pandemic. Reportedly, the government has also extended the lease of over 3 lakh sq feet of Azad Maidan land by another three years as the work was reported to be delayed.
The corridor blueprint has undergone several developments since then, one of the primary alterations being the addition of Navy Nagar into the Transit Line. With this, the metro corridor length now falls at nearly 35 km, up from the previous 32 km.
It may be noted here that the site of the metro car shed has also been caught in a disagreement between the state and the centre. The two governments are advocating the development of the car shed at Kanjurmarg and Aarey Colony, respectively, further fogging the final execution plan. Despite all, the MMRCL has set July 2023 as a target date for opening the Metro Line 3, which can effectively be achieved if the political slug is cleared.
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