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Indore, Nov 19 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh Urban Affairs Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya on Wednesday said every metro station should have a dedicated parking space so that passengers do not hesitate to use the metro for daily travel.
The minister made this statement during the inspection of metro stations in Indore. The inspection was conducted in the presence of city mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava, officials of the urban department and Indore Metro Rail Corporation (IMRC) and others.
Speaking to media persons, Vijayvargiya said, “We are conducting inspections along with officials from Indore Development Authority and other departments as the metro operations are about to begin. The issues that are coming up are being brought to the notice of the metro officials.”
Pointing to growing concerns over lack of parking facilities near Metro stations in Indore, where the first phase of Metro Rail has already started, Vijayvargiya said the Metro department is facing shortage of adequate space to develop dedicated parking lots at some stations.
He said, “When the Indore Railway Metro was designed, I had insisted on adequate parking space at each metro station, but when the project was completed, there was a shortage of parking spaces at some stations. Indore Development Authority has been directed to provide land for this.”
The trial of the second phase of Metro Rail in Indore was completed a few months ago. According to officials, the 31.32 km long metro corridor has been built at an estimated cost of Rs 7,500.80 crore.
This corridor will include 28 stations in the city, which has a population of more than 35 lakh. The project aims to provide easy, fast and environment-friendly public transportation.
On May 31, on the occasion of the 300th birth anniversary of Holkar dynasty ruler Goddess Ahilyabai, Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually flagged off the first phase of metro rail service from Gandhi Nagar and Radisson Square stations.
The first phase of rail metro in the state capital Bhopal has also been completed and trial run is being done.
Bhopal Metro is now close to opening its doors to passengers, with officials expecting to receive the crucial No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) within the next one to two weeks, officials said.
Once the approval is issued, the Metro Rail Corporation will formally inform the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and the Government of Madhya Pradesh that the system is ready for commercial operations.
–IANS
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