Even as the city waits for the Metro network to grow wider, the Delhi Government and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation are in a fix over the funds for the expansion work.
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Saturday admitted that there is a problem in raising funds for the Metro's Phase III. Speaking to media persons, Ms. Dikshit said the ground work for Phase III has begun and 105 kms of corridor will be added to the existing network by the end of the new phase.
As for the money required for the construction, she said a decision on it will be taken by a Group of Ministers.
"We will tie up for funds. For Phase-II, we had the Japan International Cooperation Agency funding us. [Now] there is a problem. We are scouting for funds and we will find a way out. Delhi will eventually have Phase III and IV and a network of 400 kms,” she said.
The Delhi Government has expressed its inability to financially support Phase III on its own and has hinted at the Delhi Development Authority and the Central Government sharing the burden.
The Planning Commission had also suggested that the DDA should partly fund Phase III and it wants 50 per cent of the cost to be shared by the Centre, Delhi Government and the DDA, while the rest can be raised through soft loans from JICA. The Phase III of the Delhi Metro is likely to cost Rs 28,000 crore with six corridors coming up.
