CES admits JNURM delay

The proposed Light-Weight Rapid Transport System (LRTS) for Kolkata, to be financed by funding from Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), was still a pipe dream as the state government was yet to submit a mobility report for the city as required under JNURM norms.

S S Chakraborty, managing director of Consulting Engineering Services (CES), the consulting agency for the project, claimed that the mobility report would take some time to prepare, as it was a major task.

The 35 per cent of the project cost that was to come from the Centre could be released in phases, if an undertaking was submitted by the state government to submit the report subsequently, argued Chakraborty on the sidelines of a technical education meet here.

Ashok Bhattacharya, West Bengal's minister of urban development & municipal affairs, said recently that LRTS was a part of the Rs 7000 crore City Development Plan prepared by Kolkata Municipal Development Authority (KMDA).

To decongest the city centre and sub-centres under the Kolkata Municipal Area, a Comprehensive Mobility Plan CMP had been prepared by KMDA, with emphasis on circular roads, fly-overs, under-passes, pedestrian walkovers, LRTS, extended underground Metro System, a bus rapid transport system, etc, claimed Bhattacharya.

Kolkata's vehicle population was growing and the city had less than 10 per cent of road space, compared to 22 per cent in Delhi. During peak hours, the ridership was 25000 persons per hour.

Chakraborty was the recipient of this year's Gold Medal for Civil Engineering Excellence by the Institute of Civil Engineers of UK.