The test run for the first Metro train that was scheduled for the end of August has been delayed.
Officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) said that the delay was solely due to their not finalising a date yet.
The first train arrived from Sao Paolo in Brazil on May 31 at Chennai Port and was then transported to the depot in Koyambedu; it is yet to be tested on the 800 metre test track in the depot.
Officials denied that there was any delay in the completion of civil works in the Koyambedu depot.
“We are just waiting to finalise a date to carry out the test run; it may be done soon,” said an official of CMRL.
In August, CMRL officials told The Hindu that Chief Minister Jayalalithaa may flag off the test run and sought a date from the Chief Secretary for the same.
The train has been going through several tests over the last months to prepare it for the first test run; it will go through several such runs before the trial run, which is scheduled to take place in December 2013, on the 11 km-stretch between Koyambedu and St. Thomas Mount.
The depot in Koyambedu, which was constructed at a cost of Rs. 198.10 crore, will serve as the operational control centre for the Metro rail; it was completed in December 2012.
