Over-reliance on DMRC is not the answer. Metro projects need uniform standards and a regulator
The shutting down of the Delhi Airport Metro Express line recently over technical snags, spiced with a blame game being played out between the two main protagonists of the project?the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and Reliance Infra?has ominous portents for the safety standards and specifications of other metro and monorail projects which are in various stages of planning and implementation in other parts of the country.
That?s largely because not only is DMRC playing the role of consultant for almost all major metro projects in the country but because the Delhi Metro project is being used as a model for these projects as well.
Pertinently, after Delhi, Bengaluru has already started metro operations on a small stretch. Kolkata, the country?s first city to have a metro, has also begun construction work to expand the metro network. Mumbai has a metro and monorail project planned and Chennai?s project is also under construction. The DMRC is carrying out the construction work for a metro project in Jaipur and is expected to get bag construction responsibilities for Kochi as well.
Apart from this, detailed project reports (DPRs) for metro projects in many cities such as Ahmedabad, Navi Mumbai, Lucknow, Ludhiana and Pune have also been prepared by the DMRC while similar spadework is being done for projects in Chandigarh, Nagpur, Bhopal and Indore. The DMRC is also providing consultancy for other transportation projects such as the Kerala High Speed Rail link and the Kozhikode Monorail.
With so much on its plate, the case of Delhi Airport Metro Express, possibly DMRC?s first major engineering failure, has become a cause of concern for the promoters of other metro projects.
A key concern is the absence of uniform metro safety standards in the country and a nodal supervisory body to oversee the functioning of this fast expanding mode of surface transport akin to the director general of civil aviation, the aviation sector?s safety watchdog.
Experts opine that a sustainable urban transport network involves integration of various modes of public transit systems. With the government now encouraging the creation of mass rapid transport (MRT) systems across the country, given the system’s potential to provide clean mobility, improved safety and low emissions, there is an acute need to set up nodal bodies, both at state and central levels, to streamline standards and specifications for the implementation of such ICT-enabled transport management systems.
Unlike urban bus transit systems, the implementation of MRT systems like tramways, mono rails, regional rail systems and metro rail involve different rail guiding technologies as well as technically complex technologies at various levels of construction and operation.
But in India we are still following a potpourri of standards and specifications for various rail transit modes operating in urban areas. Take the case of the Kolkata Metrorail project. The Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Limited has followed both Indian and European standards for implementing this project. The Kolkata Tramway, in contrast, operates on the railway ministry’s manual for standards and specifications, which haven?t been revised for decades. Interestingly, despite these archaic specifications, the ministry of urban development is in the process of promoting tramways in urban cities as part of its clean mobility initiatives.
The manual for specifications and standards for the upcoming Mumbai Monorail project are as per Japanese standards.
As for the Delhi Metro Rail project and other metro projects like Bengaluru, Chennai and Ahmedabad, where the DMRC has been appointed consultant, while the DMRC follows relevant Indian standard codes of practice as well as the IRSC and RTC codes as applicable, it also follows relevant British and German standards wherever Indian standards do not cover any particular aspect of design or construction.
By far, the Hyderabad Metro Rail project is the only project that has come up with a comprehensive manual for implementation. It goes to the credit of the state government that it engaged reputed international consultants for developing the manual, which was reviewed by the DMRC and supplemented by extensive consultations with experts and stakeholders.
The manual, not surprisingly, reflects a delicate balance that would enable development of a world-class metro system while at the same time improving its financial viability. The objective is to provide a safe and reliable urban rail system through PPP with least cost to the users and public exchequer. The Planning Commission has recommended this manual to other states wishing to take up similar projects.
Given the fact that the DMRC?s metro project has encountered occasional technical problems, the writing is there on the wall. State governments need to develop their own technical and safety standards. And the Centre needs to have a regulator for the sector for the monitoring and implementation of these standards to prevent another fiasco like the Delhi Airport Metro Express line?s.
