The Centre has approved two corridors of the Surat Metro project, which will be executed at an estimated cost of around Rs 12,000 crore, according to an official statement. The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry said the project will be implemented by the Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation (GMRC) and completed in five years.
The project will be financed mainly through equity from the Centre and state government on 50-50 basis and loan from bilateral and multilateral agencies. In the statement, the ministry said the around 69.36 lakh people of Surat Municipal Corporation, out growth area and urban agglomeration are expected to be benefitted by this project directly and indirectly.
The length of the first corridor — Sarthana to Dream City line — will be 21.61 km of which 6.47 km would be underground and the rest elevated. It will have 20 metro stations — Sarthana, Nature park, Kapodra, Labheshwar chowk area, Central Warehouse, Surat Railway station, Maskati hospital, Gandhi Baug, Majura Gate, Roopali Canal and Dream City.
Similarly, the Bhesan to Saroli metro corridor, with a proposed length of 18.74 kms, would be completely elevated with 18 stations — Bhesan, Ugat Vaarigruh, Palanpur road, LP Savani School, Adajan Gam, Aquarium, Majuragate, Kamela Darwaza, Magob and Saroli. The ministry said the Dream city and Bhesan depots will fulfil the maintenance requirements of the Surat metro rail project.
“The proposed corridors will be having multi-modal integration and will have feeder network of bus, intermediate public transport (IPT) and non-motorized transport,” the statement read.
The residential areas, commercial and industrial areas along these metro corridors will be immensely benefitted by this project as the people of these areas will be able to travel on trains from their own neighbourhood to reach different areas of the city conveniently, it added.