Days after the central government announced an allocation of ₹17,000 crore for the suburban rail network, the Railways’ ‘Pink Book’, which elaborates on the sanctioned and allocated amount for works to be taken up, has mentioned a measly ₹1 crore allocation in the next financial year for the project.
The Work, Machinery and Rolling Stock Programme of Railways for 2018-19, which was released on Tuesday, records an entry for Bengaluru Suburban for the first time. The sanctioned cost for ‘construction of elevated/at grade corridors for augmentation of line capacity’ is ₹12,061.1 crore.
However, the sum allocated for 2018-19 is ₹1 crore. “This is only the budget grant as the project is in the initial stage. There are detailed studies to be done, and over the course of implementation, more money can be released,” said a railways official.
The meagre grant of ₹1 crore notwithstanding, what the railways’ Pink Book, which lists the budgetary allocation for a financial year, reveals is that Bengaluru suburban rail network project is on track.
Figuring in the Pink Book means the ₹12,061-crore project has been sanctioned, leaving the doors open for implementation through a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV). The document forms the financial guide for executing railway projects.
Apart from a suburban rail network, the document also mentions ₹545 crore for new lines between Baiyappanahalli and Hosur, and Yeswantpur to Channasandra. The long-pending demand for a third coaching terminal at Baiyappanahalli station too seems to be a step closer with the release of ₹45 crore this financial year.
A further ₹525 crore has been sanctioned for developing stations across South Western Railways, much of which may be used to develop Bengaluru’s stations. All of these will eventually help the suburban network project.
Suburban rail
Importantly, the Pink Book furnishes proof that the cost will shared equally by the State government and the Railways. The State cabinet had recently approved an expenditure of ₹349 crore for the first stage of the project. “We have in-principle agreed for 50:50 cost sharing, and the State government has to only sign it,” said a South Western Railways spokesperson.
Krishna Prasad, member, Karnataka Railway Vedike, said while it is indeed a welcome step that the project finds mention, but it is ‘distressing’ that only a token amount of ₹1 crore has been allocated. “It is a good beginning. But, an allocation of around ₹50 crore would show seriousness to expedite the project. We hope that the supplementary budget will add to this,” he said.
Long-pending project pushed further
Sanjeev Dyammanavar, member of Praja and a long-time advocate of the network, expressed confidence that the project will gain speed, despite the meagre grant, once the SPV is set up. “Currently, the allotment is not important, as it will take a few more months to do the groundwork. After a year or so, we can expect it to be implemented,” he said.
However, he said, the railways’ document comes with two disappointments, both of them crucial for a suburban network: allocation of just ₹1 crore for quadrupling the Bangalore-Whitefield and Bangalore City-Krishnarajapuram lines (23.08 km in all); and lack of emphasis on elimination of level crossings in the city.
Confusion over numbers
What’s the cost of having suburban railway network in the city?
In August 2016, a Detailed Project Report (DPR) put the amount at ₹10,929 crore for the entire network, which is being followed by the State government.
During the Union Budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley allocated ₹17,000 crore for the project.
Railways, which is the key implementing agency for the project, has sanctioned ₹12,061.1 crore.
An official said, “We had sent a proposal for ₹12,061.1 crore. Perhaps, the finance minister accrued other projects to do with rail development in and around Bengaluru, as well as cost of rolling stock to arrive at a figure of ₹17,000 crore.”
