Urban Transport Infrastructure January 2022 by Urban Transport News

Urban Transport WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

ISSN 2581-8023 COVER INR 300 VOLUME III ISSUE 19 JANUARY 2022

World’s exclusive Journal for Urban Mobility Industry loved by 10 million readers worldwide

infrastructure

Green Railways Indian Railways completes electrification work on 46,677 RKM

Air Mobility Foundation stone laid for Rs 29,560 crore Noida International Airport

Multi-modal Logistics Park Foundation stone laid for India’s first multi-modal logistics park in Assam

Urban Rail Nearly 40-km new metro rail networks added in India in 2021

National Highways India constructs 1,41,000 km national highways in last seven years

Published by: by Published Scan from here to read online version

Followus: us Follow

SPEAK, SPONSOR & SHOWCASE YOUR BUSINESS AT

RAIL & METRO INFRASTRUCTURE VIRTUAL SUMMIT AND EXPO 2022 June 24 – 30, 2022 | ONLINE

DOWNLOAD URBAN TRANSPORT NEWS APP FOR INSTANT UPDATES

From All The Information Sources That You Trust …

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE | JANUARY 2022 | ISSUE 19

REGULAR COLUMNS

Editorial Advisory Board

Subscription Form

Editor’s Note

Flashback 2021

Urban Rail Progress Report - India

Editorial Calendar and Rate Card

HAPPY NEW YEAR

36 INTERVIEW 36

Managing Director Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

22 EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE 22

Cover Story: 2021 - Year of Major Transformation

Indian Railways Completes Electrification Work on 46,677 RKM

Kumar Keshav

By Urban Transport News

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Excellence in Rail Infra and Mobility Business Leadership Awards 2022 (Second Edition) By Urban Transport News

You can share editorial and advertorial material for our next issue by

February 28, 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

28 32 URBAN RAILWAYS

AVIATION AND AIRPORTS

Prime Minister Modi lays foundation stone of Noida International Airport

Govt. of India approves disinvestment from Air India

By Urban Transport News

100%

Kochi becomes India’s first city to have a Water Metro

52 54

By Urban Transport News

MULTI-MODEL LOGISTICS

Gadkari lays foundation stone of India’s first Multi-modal Logistic Park in Assam By Urban Transport News

WOMEN IN TRANSPORT

By Urban Transport News

ARTICLES/OPINION

Kanpur Metro: India’s fastest metro rail project commissioned

By Urban Transport News

URBAN WATER TRANSPORT 32

Digitalisation of Indian Railways

2022: Birth of an Era for Empowered Women in Transport

By Dr. Amudhan Valavan, Independent Director, MTC Chennai

By Bhakti Jain and Karishma Sharma

EVENT

Opportunities in Engineering Consulting and Infrastructure Sector in India

Industry Event Calendar 2022

By Sandeep Gulati, Regional CEO, South Asia and MD, EGIS Rail

Current Trends that will Shape the Future of Transport & Mobility in India By Ashutosh Shukla, Director (Mobility Segment), Schneider Electric India

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Our distinguished advisory board has been assembled to guide Urban Transport Infrastructure Journal to become even more representative of rail, metro and urban transport industry. Members have been invited from the highest levels of the industry and academic/research institutions to ensure high quality content so that the journal can continue on its path of success.

Karuna Gopal Smart Cities Advisor Foundation for Futuristic Cities, Hyderabad

Dr. Richa Chowdhary Associate Professor University of Delhi, New Delhi

Dr. Surabhi Singh Associate Professor Institute of Management Studies (IMS), Ghaziabad

Ar. Priyanka Kumar Urban Planner Regional Centre for Urban & Environmental Studies, Lucknow

Dr. Vivek Vaidyanathan Sudhanshu Mani, IRSME Urban Transport Scientist Urban Rail Expert Center for Study of Science, Ex-GM/ICF, Indian Railways Technology & Policy (CSTEP), Bangalore

Rajesh Agrawal Corporate Consultant, Former Member (RS), Railway Board

MC Chauhan, IRSEE Railway Expert Ex. Chairman –KMRC, Ex. GM/NCR, Indian Railways

Keshav Mishra Rail & Transit Infra Expert, Gurugram

Dr. Valavan Amudhan Public Transport Expert Executive Director-TECHSACS

SUBSCRIPTION FORM Subscriber Details:

Annual Subscription

Name: _______________________________________________________ Postal Address: ________________________________________________

Publication

Digital

Urban Transport Infrastructure (Bi-monthly)

₹600

₹2100

Metro Rail Today (Monthly)

₹1200

₹3600

______________________________________________________________

Combo Subscription

₹1500

₹5000

City: ________________________________ State: _________________

Payment Options:

Country: ______________________

 Online/Net Banking

PIN Code: ____________

Contact Person: _______________________________________________

 PayPal/Payoneer

Mob. No. : ___________________________________________________

Payment Date: ________________________

E-mail: _______________________________________________________

Reference No.: ___________________________________

Business Account No. 2213638360, Name: URBAN TRANSPORT NEWS, Bank: Kotak Mahindra Bank Branch IFSC: KKBK0000203, Swift Code: KKBKINBB203, Branch Name: Mayur Vihar Phase-I, New Delhi  Online subscribers no need to fill the Subscription Form separately.  In case of any query please reach us via e-mail editor@urbantransportnews.com or contact at +91-9716454505.

VOL. III / ISSUE 19

JANUARY 2022

Mamta Shah Managing Editor Vinod Shah Head - Marketing Anushka Khare Associate Editor Naomi Pandya Associate Editor Surya Prakash Head of Design Sangeeta Singh Media Coordinator Khushboo Parveen Marketing Officer Urban Transport Infrastructure is being published monthly by:

Urban Infra Communication Pvt. Ltd. 101, Khudi Ram Bose Marg, Pratap Nagar, Mayur Vihar Phase-I, New Delhi-110091 Tel: 011-4248 4505, +91-9716 4545 05 E-mail: editor@urbantransportnews.com Web: www.urbantransportnews.com Subscriptions: Urban Transport Infrastructure Magazine is sent without obligation to professionals and key opinion leaders working in urban transport industry in India and other countries. However, publisher reserves the right to limit the number of copies. Cover Price: Print ₹ 300.00, Digital- ₹100.00 Annual: Print ₹ 1800.00, Digital: ₹ 500.00 All subscriptions payable in advance. Print circulation available in India only. © Urban Transport News | All rights reserved. Contents of this publication may not be reproduced without written consent of the publisher. For reprint, circulation in outside India, please contact: editor@urbantransportnews.com Edited and published by Mrs. Mamta Shah, Managing Editor from Digital Singrauli, Office No. 9, Ground Floor, Near Income Tax Office, Waidhan, District Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh 486886, India. Disclaimer: The facts and opinions expressed by the authors/contributors here do not reflect the views of editorial team or editorial board of Urban Transport News or Urban Transport Infrastructure Magazine.

The January Edition of Urban Transport Infrastructure brings glimpses of the year 2021 in our Special Series Year Ender-2021. COVID-19 pandemic has been the biggest story of the year and India has seen the fight back against the COVID-19 pandemic under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India's urban transport infrastructure gained additional push with metro rail projects which certainly emerged as one of the finest innovations of Indian infrastructure sector. One metro project i.e. Bangalore Metro Rail Project Phase 2A & 2B of length 58.19 km at the completion cost of Rs 14,788 Cr has been sanctioned in June, 2021. About 40 km of metro rail lines have been commissioned in the cities of Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Nagpur and Kanpur. A total of 34 Metro Rail and Rapid Rail projects with a total length of 1,230 km is under implementation phase. The ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has also received proposal for additional 16 projects for a stretch of 638 kilometers in eight states and UTs including Delhi, Rajasthan, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Maharashtra. Under Make-in-India initiatives, the Ministry, in January, 2021, has issued a list of items where public procurement shall be done only from local suppliers. With driverless train operation on 94 km on Delhi Metro’s network, India is at 4th position in the elite league of world’s metro systems which operate drives less trains. The Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Road Transport & Highways have marked 2021 as “Year of Major Transformation’ with zero passenger fatalities for Indian Railways. The 2021 witnessed an unprecedented growth in development of infrastructure, innovation, capacity expansion of network, freight diversification and redevelopment of Gandhinagar Capital (WR) & Rani Kamlapati Station (WCR). Indian Railways has electrified over 45,000 RKM till December 2021. In this edition, we have covered interview of highly experienced leaders in the Rail & Metro industry - Mr. Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation Limited. I wish our readers and all supporter a very happy & prosperous new year 2022. Stay Safe and Stay Happy! Mamta Shah Managing Editor editor@urbantransportnews.com

ISSN 2581-8023 WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

FLASHBACK 2021

YEAR 2021 FLASHBACK JAN 2021

with Ahmedabad. The estimated cost of this LRT project is Rs 6,000 and will complete in 24-36 months.

FEB 2021 Chennai Metro’s Phase 1 Extension commissioned and State Govt approves 119-km Phase 2 project

Prime Minister Modi lays foundation stone of Ahmedabad Metro Phase 2 & Surat Metro Phase 1

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 14, 2021 inaugurated commercial operation of Chennai Metro Rail on 9.05-km stretch Washermenpet to Wimco Nagar under Phase 1 extension. Government of Tamil Nadu has accorded approval for implementation of Rs 61,843 crore three Metro Rail corridors for a length of 118.9 km under Phase II of Chennai Metro Rail Project.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi presided over the bhoomi pujan of Surat Metro Rail Project and launched the Ahmedabad Metro Rail Project Phase-2 on January 18, 2021 via video-conferencing. Surat Metro will be completely elevated and will cover 40km with two corridors — connecting Sarthana to Dream City and Bhesan to Saroli. The Ahmedabad Metro Phase 2 will connect the city to the state capital of Gandhinagar along two corridors connecting Motera Stadium to Mahatma Mandir and GNLU to GIFT City. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates 4.1-km stretch of Kolkata Metro’s Line 1 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 22, 2021 flagged off the 4.1-km stretch of Kolkata Metro’s Line 1 Noapara to Dakshineswar.

Gujarat Govt approves Rs 6000 crore Dholera Light Metro Rail Project The Government of Gujarat cabinet on January 14, 2021 approved State’s first Light Metro Rail Project for Dholera City to connect Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR)

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

MAR 2021 Maharashtra cabinet approves Rs 16,039 crore Pune-Nashik Semi High Speed Rail Corridor The Maharashtra Government cabinet on March 10, 2021 had approved the much-awaited double line semi-highspeed rail corridor to connect Pune with Nashik within the state. The Pune-Nashik Semi High-Speed Rail project is estimated to cost Rs 16,039 crore. Once started, the PuneNashik Semi HSR line would reduce the travel time between these cities from the present 6 hours to less than 2 hours (1 hour 45 minutes), boosting passenger and freight movements.

RITES-SMEC JV signs General Consultancy contract for Haryana Orbit Rail Corridor A joint venture of RITES Limited and SMEC has signed a contract worth Rs 72 crores with Haryana Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation (HRIDC) on March 31, 2021 for providing General Consultancy Services for 121.74 km Haryana Orbit Rail Corridor (HORC) from Palwal to Sonipat.

Public Investment Board approves Rs 2,092 crores Nashik MetroNeo Project The Public Investment Board (PIB) approved the proposal of India’s first MetroNeo project in Nashik on March 25, 2021. The Project has 2 corridors with a network of 33 km with 30 stations. It proposes an investment of Rs 2,092 crore. Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (Maha Metro) will execute the Nasik MetroNeo Project. The MetroNeo system will provide commuters improved connectivity & travel experience at par with conventional metros i.e. comfort, convenience, cost-effectiveness, punctuality, safe & environment friendly.

JICA, GoI signs Rs 12,107 crore loan agreement for Delhi and Bangalore Metro projects The Japanese financial institution Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on 26th March 2021 signed an official development assistance loan agreement with the Government of India to extend financial support of approximately Rs 12,107 crores for the development of the next phases of metro rail projects in Delhi and Bengaluru. For the construction of Phase 4 corridors of the Delhi Metro Rail project, JICA will provide Rs 8,390 crores to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (DMRC). For the construction of Phase 2 corridors of the Bangalore Metro Rail project, JICA will provide Rs 3,717 crores to Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRC). This loan is utilised for the construction of Reach 6 (Kalena Agaraha – Nagawara, 21.39 km), Phase 2A/2B.

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

FLASHBACK 2021

APR 2021

Indian Railways completes arch closure of world's highest Chenab Bridge in J&K Indian Railways on April 5, 2021, completed the Arch closure of the iconic Chenab Bridge which is the world's highest railway bridge. This is a major step towards the completion of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL) project. Chenab Bridge is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL), which set an important construction milestone with the completion of the steel arch of the iconic Chenab Bridge. This was one of the most difficult parts of the bridge over Chenab. This achievement is a major leap towards the completion of the 111 k.m. long winding stretch from Katra to Banihal. It is arguably the biggest civil-engineering challenge faced by any railway project in India in recent history.

Airport. This project is divided into two sub-phases viz. Phase 2A (ORR Line) and Phase 2B (Airport Line) with an estimated cost of Rs 14,788.1 crores.

Japanese firm signs MoU for track works training for Mumbai-Ahmedabad HSR project The National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL) on April 19, 2021 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japan Railway Technical Service (JARTS) for Training, Certification and Advisory Services for construction of Track works for Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail corridor under Package No. MAHSR-T-1, T-2 and T-3.

MAY 2021

Amit Banerjee appointed as new Chairman-cumManaging Director of BEML Limited

Govt. of India approves Rs 14,788 crore Bangalore Metro Phase 2 Project The Central Government cabinet on April 20, 2021, gave their nod to 58.19 km ambitious Phase 2 of the Bangalore Metro Rail project. This is a big step towards realizing the dream of metro connectivity to the City's International

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), an Indian Public Sector Undertakings, has appointed Amit Banerjee as Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) with effect from May 1, 2021. His selection was announced by Public Enterprise Selection Board (PSEB) in the board meeting held on April 26, 2021. Prior to assuming the present position, Shri Banerjee was Director (Rail & Metro).

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

FLASHBACK 2021

MMRDA appoints consultant for taking over of Mumbai Metro Line 1 The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has planned to take over the operation and maintenance of 11.5 km Mumbai Metro's Line 1 (VersovaAndheri-Ghatkopar) before launching the most awaited Line 2A & 7. The executive committee of the MMRDA had approved the appointment of a consultant to carry out due diligence of assets of Mumbai Metro Line 1 before a formal takeover. R-Infra has evaluated its share value between Rs 2,500-2,600 crore for its share in MMOPL.

Govt of India, EIB sign €150 million loan agreement for Pune Metro Rail Project The Government of India and European Investment Bank (EIB) signed the loan agreement for the second tranche of Euro 150 million for the Pune Metro Rail project through a virtual signing ceremony. The signing ceremony was held in the presence of H.E. Mr. Francisco Andre, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Portugal and Werner Hoyer, President EIB on May 7, 2021.

MMRDA commenced trial run on 20-km Line 2A & 7 of Mumbai Metro Rail Project

RITES submits final report on Guwahati Metro Rail Project

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) commenced a trial test run of the metro train on Mumbai Metro's Line 2A and Line 7 on May 31, 2021. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray flagged off the trial run from Aakurli Metro station for these two corridors, which run along the Link Road and Western Express Highway in the Western suburbs of Mumbai. The maiden trial run ceremony was witnessed by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, urban development minister Eknath Shinde, tourism minister Aaditya Thackeray, Metropolitan Commissioner RA Rajeev and other senior officials.

The Indian Railways consultancy firm RITES Limited has submitted the final Comprehensive Mobility Plan & Alternative Analysis report on the Guwahati Metro Rail project for Guwahati to the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA). The firm has suggested Metro Neo system as low-cost MRT System for the City. The Guwahati Metro Rail project has been enlisted by the Govt. of India as a planning stage project. In January 2016, RITES Ltd. had completed the Feasibility Report and the detailed project report (DPR) of Phase-I for the Rail-based Mass Rapid Transit System for Guwahati. The report had been sent to state government for review and approval.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

JUN 2021

RITES submits DPR for Uttarakhand Metro Rail Project RITES Ltd submitted fresh DPR recommending Metro Neo for Dehradun City to Uttarakhand Metro Rail, Urban Infrastructure & Building Construction Corporation Ltd. based on primary & secondary traffic data collected for the Metrolite including Topography survey and Geotechnical investigations etc. The estimated cost of proposed MetroNeo system will be Rs 1,662.8 crores. The proposed Metro Neo corridors in the Dehradun city area are one from ISBT to Gandhi Park which runs north-south and another from FRI to Raipur which runs East-West.

Govt. of India approves USD 2.2bn Semi-High Speed Rail Project between Pune and Nashik The Union Cabinet of Govt. of India has sanctioned the Rs 160bn ($US 2.2bn) project to construct a 235km 1676mm-gauge line between Pune and Nashik in Maharashtra state. Construction is anticipated to take 42 months from financial close, and once complete, the line will support operation of passenger trains at 200km/h with an average of 140km/h, and freight trains at 100km/h. The line will reduce journey times between the two cities to two hours compared with more than six at present and serve 87,000 daily passengers.

RITES submits final DPR of Rs 10,559 crore Jammu and Srinagar Metro Projects RITES Ltd has submitted final detailed project report of Jammu and Srinagar Metro Rail Project to the Jammu & Kashmir Metropolitan Region Development Authority on June 11, 2021.

Govt. of India approves extension of Delhi-Panipat RRTS to Karnal The Union Government approved the proposal of extension of the Delhi-Panipat Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) Project to Karnal on June 29, 2021.

SVR Srinivas appointed as new Metropolitan Commissioner of MMRDA The Maharashtra government on June 3, 2021, appointed S V R Srinivas as the new Metropolitan Commissioner of Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). Srinivas takes charges from R A Rajeev, who has been superannuated on May 31, 2021, after completing the first three - month extension given by the government. Srinivas is 1991-batch IAS Officer from Andhra Pradesh cadre. WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

FLASHBACK 2021

Satish Agnihotri appointed as Managing Director of National High Speed Rail Corporation 1982-batch IRSEE Officer, Satish Agnihotri was appointed as new Managing Director of National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL).Prior to appointment to NHSRCL, Satish had been retired from the post of Chairman and Managing Director of Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL). He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil), 1982 and Master of Engineering (Structures), 1984, both from IIT, Roorkee and was conferred the distinguished Alumnus Award in 2013. Agnihotri comes with more than 19 years of experience in implementation of mega rail infrastructure projects.

MMRDA commenced trial run on 20-km Line 2A & 7 of Mumbai Metro Rail Project The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) commenced a trial test run of the metro train on Mumbai Metro's Line 2A and Line 7 on May 31, 2021. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray flagged off the trial run from Aakurli Metro station for these two corridors, which run along the Link Road and Western Express Highway in the Western suburbs of Mumbai. The maiden trial run ceremony was witnessed by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, urban development minister Eknath Shinde, tourism minister Aaditya Thackeray, Metropolitan Commissioner RA Rajeev and other senior officials.

RITES submits final report on Guwahati Metro Rail Project The Indian Railways consultancy firm RITES Limited has submitted the final Comprehensive Mobility Plan & Alternative Analysis report on the Guwahati Metro Rail project for Guwahati to the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA). The firm has suggested Metro Neo system as low-cost MRT System for the City. The Guwahati Metro Rail project has been enlisted by the Govt. of India as a planning stage project.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

India’s first Infra PR Company launched! Urban Infra Communication offers Corporate PR, Media, Advertising & Market Research Services to Infrastructure sectors

URBAN INFRA COMMUNICATION PVT. LTD. (CIN: U92140DL2022PTC392284) 101, Khudi Ram Bose Marg, Mayur Vihar Phase 1, New Delhi – 110091, India Tel: +91 9716 4545 05 Email: admin@urbaninfragroup.com

www.urbaninfragroup.com

FLASHBACK 2021

JUL 2021

Maha Metro signs MoU with CIDCO to operate and maintain Navi Mumbai Metro Line 1 The City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra Ltd (CIDCO) has taken an important step towards the implementation of Navi Mumbai Metro Line 1. CIDCO has appointed Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (Maha Metro) to operate and maintain the Line 1 for next 10 years on July 15, 2021.

Ashwini Vaishnav takes charge of new Railway Minister of India Former bureaucrat Ashwini Vaishnaw took charge of the new Railway Ministry in Indian Government on July 8, 2021. He was inducted into the Central Government cabinet recently and has been given the responsibility of the Ministry of Railways. Along with the Railways, he has also been given the charge of the Ministry of Information Technology and Communications. Vaishnav has been made minister at a time when various ways are being considered to increase the income of the Railways. It also includes the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.

AUG 2021 Bangalore Metro opens 7.5-km Mysore RoadKengeri Extension Line for public Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurated the 7.53-km extended Bengaluru Metro line between Mysore Road and Kengeri with with six stations — Nayandahalli, Rajarajeshwarinagar, Jnanabharathi, Pattengere, Kengeri Bus Terminal, and Kengeri — on the extended Purple line. This stretch is part of Phase 2 of Bangalore Metro Rail project. A further extension from Kengeri to Challaghatta (2km) is scheduled for completion by March 2022.

Anjum Parwez appointed as new Managing Director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs had appointed 1994-batch IAS officer, Anjum Parwez as the new Managing Director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL). Prior to his posting to BMRCL, Parwez was the principal secretary in the Transport Department, Government of Karnataka. Prawez holds B. Tech. degree from IIT, Delhi and Post Graduate degree in Public Policy and Management from IIM, Bangalore.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

SEP 2021

OCT 2021 MoHUA & IUT concludes 14th edition of Urban Mobility India Conference & Awards 2021

Railway Minister flags off equipment to speed up the construction of India's first Bullet Train

Union Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurated the 14th edition of Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference 2021 on October 29, 2021. The day-long Conference was held on-line. The main theme of this year’s conference is “Mobility for All” which focuses on providing equitable access and promote inclusive urban transportation which aims to provide affordable, clean, safe, informative, efficient and accessible transport systems, with special attention to the diverse needs from all factions of the society, especially the specially-abled, elderly, women and children.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had flagged off an indigenously designed and manufactured equipment on September 9, 2021 to speed up the construction of viaducts for Mumbai - Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor. He addressed the gathering through video conferencing from New Delhi. This will expedite construction of high speed railway (HSR). Work has already begun on 325 km (in Gujarat) out of 508 km corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad.

NOV 2021 Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan lays foundation stone of Bhopal Metro Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan laid foundation stone to commence construction of eight metro stations on Line 1 of Bhopal Metro Rail project on November 19, 2021.

Delhi Metro opens Dhansa Bus Stand - Najafgarh section of Grey line to public The Dhansa Bus Stand-Najafgarh section on Grey line was inaugurated by Hardeep Singh Puri (Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs) and Arvind Kejriwal (Chief Minister of Delhi) via video conferencing on September 18, 2021. Dhansa Bus Stand Metro Station is the first-ever underground integrated parking facility on the Grey Line that will allow commuters to park their vehicles and move to the concourse area directly. The total length of this section is 1.2km . WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

FLASHBACK 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the commercial operation of Kanpur Metro

Delhi Metro launches driverless train operations on 59-km long Pink Line (Majlis Park – Shiv Vihar)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated commercial operation of metro train on 9-km elevated corridor (priority section) of Kanpur Metro Rail project on December 28, 2021. The 9-km elevated corridor will conenct IIT Kanpur to Mitijhil with 9 stations. The foundation stone for construction on the priority corridor was laid on November 15, 2019 by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and construction work commenced by the Afcons Infrastructure Limited. Kanpur Metro termed as fasted metro rail project as the construction work of this corridor was completed in 2 years 2 months only and it has break the record of Lucknow Metro Rail project which was earlier known as fastest Metro project.

Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri and Transport Minister of Delhi, Kailash Gahlot on November 25, 2021 inaugurated the Driverless Train Operations (DTO) on the 59 kilometre long Pink Line (Majlis Park to Shiv Vihar) of Delhi Metro via videoconferencing. With this, the Delhi Metro’s fully automated network grows to about 97 kilometres, which is 4th largest in the world and the only DTO network in India.

DEC 2021 Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan lays foundation stone of Indore Metro Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on December 25, 2021 laid the foundation stone for two work packages of the Indore Metro phase 1, including the construction of 16 stations and 11-km viaduct, cumulatively worth Rs 1,417 crore. The phase -1 of the under-construction metro rail project will cover 31 km. The alignment is planned as a ring line from Gandhi Nagar – Bhawarsala- Radisson Square – Bengali Square – Indore Railway Station – Rajwada Palace to Airport.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Manoj Joshi appointed as new Secretary of Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs The Govt. of India has appointed 1989-batch IAS Officer from Kerala Cadre, Manoj Joshi as new Secretary of Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) on December 29, 2021. Prior to his posting in MoHUA, he was working as Special Secretary in Ministry of Food Processing Industry.

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

Metro Rail Progress Report India Status of Metro & Urban Rail Projects in India

Investment Approved (in Rs/Crores) Agra Metro

12900

Ahmedabad Metro

System

Network Length (km)

OPERATIONAL

Metro Rail

717.7 19.5

Tram

38.0

Delhi Metrolite

Regional Rail (RRTS)

High Speed Rail

Total Network:

3370.9

6941

Chennai Metro

Monorail

2593.5

58193

Bhopal Metro Coimbatore Metro

Suburban Rail

16157

Bangalore Metro

85613 6683

Delhi Metro

117278 5587

Dholera Metro

7000

Gorakhpur Metro

4672

Gurgaon Metro

8736

Hyderabad Metro

18800

Indore Metro

7500

Jaipur Metro

7695

Jammu Metro

4825

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Kanpur Metro

System

Network Length (km)

Metro Rail

704.4

Metrolite

Suburban Rail

Regional Rail (RRTS)

85.15

High Speed Rail

508.18

Total Network:

1285.97

11076

Kochi Metro

8086

Kolkata Metro

47524

Kozhikode Metro

2773

Lucknow Metro

12374

Meerut Metro

11544

Mumbai Metro

140814

Mumbai Monorail

3000

Nagpur BG Metro

334

Nagpur Metro

19896

Navi Mumbai Metro

7633

Noida Metro

11185

Patna Metro

NEW APPROVED

System

Network Length (km)

Metro Rail Metrolite/MetroNeo Suburban Rail Regional Rail (RRTS) High Speed Rail Total Network:

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

670.2 94.5 252.96 224.7 4097.0 5339.36

13479

Pune Metro

24773

Srinagar Metro

5734

Surat Metro

12020

Thane Metro

7165

Trivandrum Metro

4219

Varanasi Metro

7000

Vijayawada Metro

15000

Visakhapatnam Metro

15933

Warangal Metro

1341

50000

100000

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

150000

URBAN RAIL PROGRESS INDIA

METRO RAIL UNDER CONSTRUCTION METRO PROJECT

OPERATIONAL METRO RAIL NETWORK Project

Network (km)

Nagpur Metro (Maharashtra)

15.1

56.1

Navi Mumbai Metro (Maharashtra)

11.1

54.1

Patna Metro (Bihar)

Ahmedabad Metro (Gujarat)

6.5

Bangalore Metro (Karnataka) Chennai Metro (Tamil Nadu) Delhi Metro (Delhi)

Project

348.5

6.1

Pune Metro (Maharashtra)

31.6

Surat Metro (Gujarat)

21.6

Gurgaon Rapid Metro (Haryana)

12.1

Hyderabad Metro (Telangana)

67.0

Jaipur Metro (Rajasthan)

12.0

Kochi Metro (Kerala)

25.0

Project

Kolkata Metro (West Bengal)

39.2

Dholera Metro (Gujarat)

100.0

Kanpur Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

8.7

Delhi Metrolite (Delhi)

40.85

Lucknow Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

22.9

Mumbai Metro (Maharashtra)

11.4

Nagpur BG Metro (Maharashtra)

268.63

Mumbai Monorail (Maharashtra)

19.5

Nashik Metro Neo (Maharashtra)

32.0

Nagpur Metro (Maharashtra)

24.5

Thane Metro (Maharashtra)

29.0

Noida Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

29.7

Gorakhpur Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

27.4

Gurugram Metro (Haryana)

30.0

Kozhikode Light Metro (Kerala)

13.3

Trivandrum Light Metro (Kerala)

21.8

Total Network:

737.2

UNDER CONSTRUCTION METRO PROJECTS Project

Network (km)

Agra Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

4.0

Ahmedabad Metro (Gujarat)

33.5

Bangalore Metro (Karnataka)

118.8

Bhopal Metro (Madhya Pradesh) Chennai Metro (Tamil Nadu)

6.3 118.9

Delhi Metro (Delhi)

61.6

Indore Metro (Madhya Pradesh)

16.3

Kanpur Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

14.8

Kolkata Metro (West Bengal)

55.7

Mumbai Metro (Maharashtra)

169.0

Meerut Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

20.0

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Total Network:

704.4

NEW APPROVED METRO PROJECTS Network (km)

Total Network:

87.6

650.58

UNDER CONSIDERATION METRO PROJECTS Project

Network (km)

Coimbatore Metro (Tamil Nadu)

136.0

Ghaziabad Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

11.0

Noida Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

3.8

Jammu Metro (J&K)

23.0

Srinagar Metro (J&K)

25.0

Varanasi Metro (Uttar Pradesh)

29.2

Visakhapatnam Metro (Andhra Pradesh) Vijayawada Metro (Andhra Pradesh) Total Network:

140.2 66.2 434.4

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

HSR/RRTS HIGH SPEED RAIL NETWORK Project

Network (km)

Executing Agency

Mumbai-Ahmedabad HSR corridor

508.0

NHSRCL

Under construction

Mumbai-Nagpur HSR corridor

741.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Mumbai-Hyderabad HSR corridor

711.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Delhi-Varanasi HSR corridor

865.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Delhi-Ahmedabad HSR corridor

886.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Chennai-Mysore HSR corridor

435.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Delhi-Amritsar HSR corridor

459.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Varanasi-Hawrah HSR corridor

760.0

NHSRCL

DPR under progress

Delhi-Mumbai HSR corridor

1384.0

HSRCIL

Feasibility study completed

Mumbai-Chennai HSR corridor

1334.0

HSRCIL

Feasibility study under progress

Chennai-Kolkata HSR corridor

1670.0

HSRCIL

Pre-feasibility study under progress

Delhi-Kolkata HSR corridor

1447.0

HSRCIL

Feasibility study under progress

Mumbai-Kolkata HSR corridor

1961.0

HSRCIL

Pre-feasibility study under progress

Delhi-Chennai HSR corridor

2184.0

HSRCIL

Feasibility study under progress

Total Network:

Status

15345.0

SEMI HIGH SPEED RAIL NETWORK Project

Network (km)

Executing Agency

Status

Ahmedabad-Rajkot Semi HSR corridor

227.0

G-RIDE

Pune-Nashik Semi HSR corridor

235.0

MAHARAIL

Approved by State Govt.

Thiruvananthapuram-Kasargod Semi HSR corridor

530.6

K-RAIL

Approved by State Govt.

Total Network:

992.6

Feasibility study completed

REGIONAL RAIL TRANSIT SYSTEM NETWORK Project

Network (km)

Executing Agency

Delhi-Meerut RRTS Smart Line

82.15

NCRTC

Under construction

Delhi-Panipat RRTS Smart Line

103.0

NCRTC

DPR approved

Delhi-Alwar RRTS Smart Line

106.0

NCRTC

Approved

Haryana Orbital Rail

121.7

HRIDC

DPR Approved

Total Network:

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

Status

412.85

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Cover Story

2021: Year of Major Transformation

he year 2021 was significant for the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) as it not only continued with the good work done previously but also initiated certain measures which will have far reaching impact on the life of the citizens. The Ministry carried forward with its mission to build good quality of National Highways (NHs) during the year. In the last 7 years, length of NHs has gone up by more than 50% from 91,287 km (as on April 2014) to around 1,41,000 km now. All this happened despite the adverse situation due to Covid restrictions and heavy & long monsoon season. The Union Cabinet approved “PM Gati Shakti - National Master Plan (NMP)” including institutional framework for rolling out, implementation, monitoring and support mechanism for providing multi-modal connectivity. The Plan was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an event at Pragati Maidan in the national capital. The Ministry is working actively to realize the Prime Minister’s vision of building an integrated multi-modal national network of transportation and logistics as part of the “PM GatiShakti – National Master Plan”. Work on the MultiModal Logistics Parks (MMLPs) gained momentum in 2021, with tenders being invited for two MMLP projects – at Nagpur (Sindhi) and Chennai. One of the major initiatives taken in 2021 was the announcement of the voluntary Vehicle Scrappage Policy, which will phase out unfit vehicles from the country. The

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

policy, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function in Gandhinagar (Gujarat), will not only reduce pollution, caused by the old, unfit vehicles from the road but also lead to substantial employment generation. The policy intends to create scrapping infrastructure in the form of Automated Testing Stations and Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facilities (RVSFs) across the country. Work on it has already started. The first such facility at Noida was recently inaugurated by Road Transport & Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari. While work continued on the different NH projects and tunnels at high speed, including Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, Bangalore-Chennai Expressway and Zojila Tunnel, the foundation stone was laid for many projects by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, like the DelhiDehradun Expressway which will reduce the existing travel time between Dehradun and the National Capital thereafter, and the Zojila Tunnel.

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

As part of citizen-centric move, the Ministry started a new registration mark for vehicles under BH series, wherein those eligible for the scheme need not change the number plate of his vehicle while shifting to another state. This was done to ease the burden of re-registration, which is a cumbersome and time-consuming process. In a significant step towards seamless movement of vehicles on the National Highways, the Ministry made it mandatory to use FASTag at all the toll plazas. A number of steps were taken in 2021 to improve the road safety scenario in the country, which includes announcement of reward scheme for Good Samaritan and constitution of Road Safety Board. Similarly, several steps were taken to encourage the use of eco-friendly vehicles and fuel in order to make the environment cleaner. A Special Campaign was launched to dispose of pending files. Accordingly, monitoring of disposal of pending MP WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

references as on 30 September, 2021 was done on daily basis through a dedicated portal and efforts were made for its quality disposal through coordination among different offices. Out of 909 references pending as on 30 September, 830 replies were given by the RTH Minister till 14 December and in a day, a maximum of 169 MP references were disposed off. Similarly, through daily monitoring and in collaboration with concerned offices, the Ministry achieved a major target to dispose of 125 State Govt. References, 1339 Public Grievances and 644 PG Appeals during the campaign. MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS PM-Gatishakti The Union Cabinet approved “PM Gati Shakti - National Master Plan (NMP)” including institutional framework for rolling out, implementation, monitoring and support URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

COVER STORY

mechanism for providing multi-modal connectivity. The Plan was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an event at Pragati Maidan in the national capital. The NMP aims at bringing in holistic planning and development across the country. All economic zones and infrastructure developments depicted in a single integrated platform will provide spatial visibility of physical linkages to promote comprehensive and integrated multi-modal national network of transportation and logistics with the aim to enhance ease of living, ease of doing business, minimize disruptions and expedite cost efficient completion of works. NMP will boost economic growth, attracting foreign investments and enhance the country’s global competitiveness there by enabling smooth transportation of goods, people and services and creating employment opportunities. Vehicle Scrappage Policy: Cnverting Waste To Wealth The voluntary Vehicle Scrappage Policy was launched to create an eco-system for phasing out unfit and polluting vehicles in an environment-friendly and safe manner. It will also create a viable circular economy and bring value for all stakeholders while being environmentally responsible. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed an investors’ summit on the issue in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Speaking at the event, he said the policy will play a big role in the modernization of the vehicular population in the country, removing unfit vehicles from the roads in a scientific manner. He said the policy will not only bring in a fresh investment of more than Rs 10,000 crore but will also generate job opportunities. The Prime Minister pointed out that the new scrappage policy is an important link in the circular economy of Waste to Wealth.

National Highways: Construction & Achievements Pace of construction increased from 12 km per day in 201415 to 37 km per day in 2020-21 (by more than 3 times). 4,410 km NHs constructed in 2014-15, while 13,327 km NHs constructed in 2020-21. In the last 7 years, length of NHs has gone up by more than 50% from 91,287 km (as on April 2014) to around 1,41,000 km now. In the current financial year 2021-22, the Ministry has so far built 5,407 km on NHs (as on 24th December. 2021). FASTag Made Mandatory In a significant step towards seamless movement of vehicles on the National Highways, the Ministry decided that all lanes of the fee plazas on NHs would be declared as “FASTag lane” with effect from midnight of 15-16 February, 2021. The step has promoted fee payment through digital mode, reduce waiting time and fuel consumption, and provide for seamless passage through the fee plazas. More than 4.35 crore FASTags have been issued (as on 21 December, 2021). The average daily collection has reached Rs 106 crore (till November 2021) with average daily Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) transactions of 71.38 lakh. FASTag penetration across the country is at around 97 % and many toll plazas are having 99% penetration. As many as 728 National and 201 State Highway Fee Plazas have already been made FASTag enabled. As per estimates, FASTag will save around ₹20,000 crore per year on fuel, that will save precious foreign exchange and help the environment as well. Action Against Non-Standard Vehicles A notification was issued by the Ministry in March 2021 to ensure that vehicles are manufactured as per standards mandated by the Central Government. The idea was to protect citizens in case of manufacturing defects. Vehicle manufacturers will have to pay heavy fines for selling vehicles manufactured and sold in contravention of provisions of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, if they do not initiate voluntary recalI of such vehicles. This has become effective from 1st April 2021. Making Roads Safer: Honoring Good Samaritan

In order to facilitate setting up of Automated Testing Stations (ATSs), the Ministry came out with Rules for recognition, regulation and control of ATSs. These Rules take into account vehicle safety & emission requirements and global best practices and have been incorporated according to the vehicles and systems in place in India. An automated testing station uses mechanical equipment to automate the various tests required to check fitness to a vehicle.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

A reward scheme was announced in 2021 for Good Samaritan who has saved life of a victim of a fatal accident involving a motor vehicle by administering immediate assistance and rushing to Hospital within the Golden Hour to provide medical treatment. The amount of award would be Rs 5,000 per incident. An individual Good Samaritan can be awarded maximum 5 times in a year. Ministry notified constitution of National Road Safety Board, which shall be responsible for promoting road safety, innovation and adoption of new technology and for regulating traffic and motor vehicles. Board’s Head Office WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

shall be in the National Capital Region and the Board may establish offices at other places in India. Collaboration with University of NSW, Australia The Indian Academy of Highway Engineers (IAHE), under Ministry, signed an Agreement with University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia for setting up a Centre for Advanced Transportation Technology and Systems at IAHE campus, Noida. The Agreement, signed in a virtual ceremony, chaired by Nitin Gadkari, is for a project for capacity building, technology transfer and creation of enabling environment for establishment of the Centre in IAHE. The UNSW will also deliver a course, certified by it, on smart transport systems and modelling. PRESERVING HERITAGE In a significant move, the Ministry amended the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, formalising the registration process of vintage motor vehicles. Accordingly, all 50-plus, 2&4 wheelers, which have been maintained in their original form and have not undergone any substantial overhaul, can be registered as vintage motor vehicles. This is aimed at preserving and promoting the heritage of old vehicles in the country.

Multi-modal Logistics Park Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs Nitin Gadkari laid the foundation stone for country’s first Multi- modal Logistic Park at Jogighopa in Assam on October 20, 2021. The Rs 693.97 crore park will provide direct air, road, rail and waterways connectivity to the people. It will be developed under the ambitious Bharatmala Pariyojana of the Government of India. An MoU was signed between NHIDCL and Ashoka paper mills, Govt of Assam on the occasion for sharing of land and logistics in Jogighopa. An MoU signed with NHAI & TIDCO for Development of Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) in Chennai Port's land. Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbanand Sonowal has announced forming of a Special Purpose vehicle (SPV) for development of a Multimodal Logistics Park (MMLP) at VOC Port in Chennai. The MMLP to be developed through Public Private Partnership with the SPV providing land and connectivity and the actual MMLP infrastructure to be developed by a private developer. ***

Indian Railways completes electrification work on 46,677 RKM

rior to 2014, the Railway Electrification had been moving at a normal pace. However, today seven years later, it is remarkable to consider the positive changes that have taken place. The worldwide energy sector has also moved a great deal during this period, particularly in terms of efforts made by all the stakeholders to strengthen the policies to tackle the threat of climate change. Net-zero emissions pledge is being taken by more & more countries. Focusing on India’s energy scenario in general and Railway’s Mission 100% electrification in particular, two main positive developments that stand out are: a) Decision to electrify its entire Broad Gauge network in a Mission mode to provide environment friendly, green & clean mode of transport to its people. b) Decision to unleash its potential to use renewable energy especially solar, by making use of huge land parcel available along the railway track.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Approach adopted by Indian Railways Railways has framed a well-designed policy -Mission 100% electrification- a game changer in Indian energy sector and there is tremendous opportunity for India to develop and successfully meet the aspirations of its citizens both for freight & passenger segment; without following the highcarbon pathway that other economies have pursued in the past. India is the world’s third largest energy consuming country, Energy use has doubled since 2000, with 80% of demand still being met by coal, oil and solid biomass. Approach adopted by Indian Railways Railways has framed a well-designed policy -Mission 100% electrification- a game changer in Indian energy sector and there is tremendous opportunity for India to develop and successfully meet the aspirations of its citizens both for freight & passenger segment; without following the highcarbon pathway that other economies have pursued in the WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

RAILWAY ELECTRIFICATION

past. India is the world’s third largest energy consuming country, Energy use has doubled since 2000, with 80% of demand still being met by coal, oil and solid biomass. Need for electrification After running of trains on electric traction, the diesel locomotive hauled trains cease to work, which eliminates pollution as well as India’s dependence on the imported fuel and trains are operated from the electricity produced in self-reliant India, also saving significant foreign exchange. Apart from this, the average speed of trains increases along the routes of electrification due to increased throughput and there are development of industries, agro-based businesses and progress of villagers and farmers along the electrified routes Current status of Electrification of Railway Lines in India By the time India gained independence in 1947, its railway network extended for more than 50,000 km. It has since grown to around 68,000 km, making it fourth largest railway network in the world. India’s railway network was for a long time being largely fuelled by coal and diesel. However, after the decision of increased emphasison electrification, the share of electrified track has surged Page 4 of 11 in past 3-4 years rising from 24% in 2000 to 40% in 2017 and over 65% by the end of 2020. The share of electricity in total energy use by Indian Railways has seen a corresponding increase, albeit at a more moderate pace. In recent years, there has been a renewed focus on transforming railways to make them a desirable option for long distance transport as well as urban public mobility, wherein Railway electrification has a big role to play. The phenomenal growth in Indian Railways electrified network over the year can be seen in the Table 1. Year

Growth of Railway Electrification in RKM

2004-09

2,150

2009-14

3,038

2014-19

13,687

2019-24 (planned)

29201 (27,802 achieved till Dec’21)

Table 1: Growth of Electrified railway network in India in Five Year Period

Total Broad Gauge network for electrification is 64,689 RKM. Out of which more than 46,677 RKM has already been completed i.e. more than 70% of railway lines are already electrified. With the continuously increasing electrified network in India, there has been complete

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

turnaround in share of GTKMs hauled by electric traction in recent past. For instance in Eastern Railway of India, the GTKMs hauled by electric traction during 2020-21 ( upto Jan.) on freight are 85% and coaching 98% as compared to 58% and 58% respectively during the same period of 201920.With enhanced electrics under wire, freight GTKMs on electric traction has increased by 40% upto Jan, 21 compared upto Jan,20 even when total Goods GTKMs hauled are less by 4% due to COVID -19. This has resulted in reduction in consumption of diesel fuel by about 76% i.e. approx. Rs 550 Crores upto Jan, 21 compared to Jan,20 which will result in saving of foreign exchange on import, besides reduced carbon footprints. By March 2022, major resource earning States for IR like Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Bihar shall be fully electrified. Total Broad Gauge (BG) Route kilometer (RKM) Indian Railways (including Konkan Railway) is 64,689 RKM. With the increased emphasis on electrification, allocation of funds for Electrification projects has been steadily increasing & in the recently announced budget highest ever allocation of 7,542 Cr has been made for Railway electrification projects during 2021-22 and highly remunerative projects are allocated funds importance and not zone wise. Indian Railways have recorded an increase in electrification work of 371% during the period of 20142020 as compared to 2009-2014. Around 41,489 km of Railway routes have been electrified during these 7 years. This has been made possible due to change in thinking over the years and there has been a change in the way we work, under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Post 70+ years of independence, India has been able to add to railway network impressively but the extent of electrification trails, resulting in close to 66% of the entire Broad Gauge network length of country being electrified till now. The advantage of 66% electrified network is that it accounts for 60% of passenger traffic and 67% of freight traffic for the Indian Railways at only 38% of the total fuel bill incurrence. Hence, the need for full electrification has been long felt and is regarded as a game-changer in pushing railways further to handle greater freight hauling requirement tune as well as passenger traffic with enhanced speed and lower operating costs. ***

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Prime Minister Modi lays foundation stone of India’s largest International Airport at Jewar

rime Minister Narendra Modi on November 25, 2021 laid the foundation stone for the Noida International Airport at Jewar. It is touted to be India’s largest airport upon its completion. Addressing a gathering in the poll-bound state, Prime Minister said that Noida International Airport will become the ‘logistics gateway’ of northern India and will provide new employment opportunities to thousands of people in the region. It will benefit crores of people of Delhi-NCR and western UP.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

The airport, the second international aerodrome in DelhiNational Capital Region, is expected to be operational by September 2024 with an initial capacity to handle 1.2 crore passengers per annum. The airport will help decongest the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport in the national capital. It is strategically located and will serve the people of cities including Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Agra, Faridabad and neighbouring areas. The airport is spread across an area of 5,000 acres and is being developed by Zurich International Airport AG at an estimated cost of Rs 29,560 crores. The Swiss Airport company had won the bid in November, 2019 following which a concessionaire agreement had been signed with the state government. According to the UP government, it will be the fourth largest international airport in the world and the project would create more than one lakh job opportunities. 2021: Major Development in Aviation Sector in India UDAN The Ministry of Civil Aviation has awarded 168 routes under UDAN 4.1 scheme. 100 routes commenced as part of the vision to improve connectivity across India. 12 airports were operationalised which included 3 heliports. WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

AVIATION AND AIRPORTS

Krishi UDAN In Ocober 2021, Govt. of India launched Krishi UDAN 2.0 with aim to ensure seamless, cost-effective, time-bound air transportation. Logistics for all Agri-produce originating especially from Northeast, hilly and tribal regions of the country. Under the scheme, full waiver of Landing, Parking, TNLC, and RNFC charges for Indian freighters and P2C has been implemented at 25 airports from NER, Hilly and Tribal region and 28 airports from remaining parts of the country. 50% of Air Freight Charges and 50% of TSP charges of Cargo Terminal operators proposed for subsidiary. 7 focus routes identified to support region specific products like Lichi from Darbhanga, Pineapple from Agartala, etc. Drone Policy Govt. of India notified Drone Rules 2021 on 25th August 2021 with the aims to make India a global hub for the research and development, testing, manufacturing and operation of drones. To facilitate further growth, the Government approved the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme on 30 September, 2021 for drones and drone components in India. Digital Sky Platform (DSP) has been launched to regulate the entire gamut of activities pertaining to drone operations as well as to function as a single window online platform to ensure smooth functionality of the applications. Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) Policy framework, 2021 has been released on 24 October 2021 to enable complex operations of drones and increase the overall safety in the UTM airspace. FTO Policy On 25 September, 2021, Airport Authority of India (AAI) announced a liberalized FTO policy to support growth of aviation industry in the country. Under the extant policy, airport royalty was abolished, and annual fee was rationalized significantly for new FTOs. AAI issued award letters to establish Nine flying schools at Five AAI airports (Lilabari, Khajuraho,Belagavi, Kalaburgi and Jalgaon). With growth of aviation industry, opportunities for pilots is increasing- 787 Commercial Pilot Licenses(CPL) were issued during Jan-Nov 2021, an all time high. AirSewa 3.0 AirSewa 3.0 made live on 02 Oct 2021 with enhanced feature of grievance redressal. New features include Grievance escalation by users or on Service Level Agreement (SLA) expiry, Grievance transfer among stakeholders, Enhanced roles and permissions for nodal officers, Enhanced flight information and tracking of flights, Public forum for discussions, Mobile app for nodal officers. The service has been promoted extensively by

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

printing AirSewa QR code on the boarding cards and tickets, promotion through Flight Information Display System (FIDS) etc at strategic locations at over 80 airports. Pending grievances on AirSewa portal has been reduced from 1,354 on 20 Jul 2021 to 59 on 15 Dec 2021 (96% reduction). Disinvestment & Strategic Sale For Air India sale, share purchase agreement signed with Talace Pvt Ltd on 25th October 2021 after considering Winning bid of Rs 18,000 crore as Enterprise Value (EV). Non-core assets including land & building, valued at Rs.14,718 crore, to be transferred to Air India Asset Holding Ltd (AIAHL). Entire disinvestment process carried out in a transparent manner through multi-layered decision making. PIM for the sale of Pawan Hans issued. eGCA : An innovative step towards Digital India E-Governance in Directorate General of Civil Aviation (eGCA) was launched on 11 November, 2021 with the aim of bringing about ease of doing business, transparency and automation of the processes and functions of DGCA. Under this initiative, services provided to various DGCA stakeholders such as Pilots, Aircraft Maintenance Engineers, Air Traffic Controllers, Air Operators, Airport Operators, Flying Training Organizations, Maintenance and Design organizations etc. are now available on the eGCA. Around 300 services of the eGCA have been implemented. This Single window platform will eliminate operational inefficiencies, minimize personal interaction, improve regulatory reporting, enhance transparency and increase productivity. Mobile app has also been launched for Pilots and Aircraft Maintenance Engineers to view their profiles and update their log books on the go. Airport Monetization & Development 6 Airports including Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Mangaluru, Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram handed over for management under the PPP model. Under National Monetization Pipeline, 25 additional airports have been identified for monetization in next 3 years. Three airports including Kushinagar, Kurnool and Sindhudurg have been operationalized this year under RCS-UDAN scheme. Dehradun terminal was launched and foundation stone laying ceremony done for the Jewar international airport. ***

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

EXCELLENCE IN

RAIL INFRA & MOBILITY BUSINESS LEADERSHIP AWARDS 2022 JUNE 15, 2022 | NEW DELHI, INDIA

To celebrate India’s 75th anniversary of Independence, Urban Infra Communication in collaboration with leading industries and media platforms has decided to honor and recognise top industry leaders for their extraordinary contribution in developing major infrastructure in the country through their innovative ideas, products and services. The profiles of selected industry leaders will be featured in a special coffee table book titled “75 Leaders Transforming India’s Urban Infrastructure”. The book will be launched at the second edition of excellence in Rail Infra and Mobility Business Leadership Awards 2022 which is scheduled on June 15, 2022 in New Delhi, India. KEY DATES  Nominations for Awards: 1 January – 30 April, 2022  Announcement of Winners: 15 May, 2022  Delegate Registration: 1 – 31 May , 2022  Awards Ceremony: 15 June, 2022 Rules  The winners will be awarded with an artistic trophy along with 'Certificate of Appreciation‘ in presence of renowned industry leaders.  Name with short profile (1 page including photograph) of the winner will be featured in special Coffee Table book.  The winners will be selected by a team of industry experts and our editorial advisory board.  The evaluation of winners will be done based on their contribution and innovative achievements irrespective of the age of the person or business entity.  In case of non-selection, 50% nomination fee will be refunded to nominee.

Eligibility & Nomination Guidelines     

Nominations are open to all national/international personalities irrespective of their age and size of the business. Nominee should have either in working person or retired from the capacity of MD/CEO/Director/VP/HOD. The nominee must have at least one representative office /person in India and engaged in infrastructure projects. The nomination form must be filled by an authorized representative of the industry leader. More than one nominations can be submitted from a company or firm.

How to submit nominations

Nomination Fee

Step 1: Fill Nomination Form Online Step 2: Receive Invoice for Payment of Nominations Fee Step 3: Pay Nomination Fee and Get Confirmation E-mail

INR 35,000 + GST 18% USD 500 EUR 450

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES Lead Sponsorship: INR 3,00,000+GST 18% (USD 6000, EUR 5400)  Corporate Logo presence on event back drops.  Corporate Logo presence in all e-mailers and promotional materials.  Corporate logo presence on Trophy and Certificates  Special press release on welcoming the lead sponsor  One Digital Banner 425x425 pixels on Event Website for six months duration  15 min. speaking slot at the award ceremony  5 delegate passes to attend the award ceremony  One full page advertisement in the six issues of Metro Rail Today and Urban Transport Infrastructure magazines along with Q&A (interview) with the MD/CEO/featured story of sponsor company Gold Sponsorship: INR 2,00,000+GST 18% (USD 4000, EUR 3600)  Corporate Logo presence on event back drops.  Corporate Logo presence in all promotional materials.  Corporate logo presence on Trophy and Certificates  Special press release on welcoming the gold sponsor  One Digital Banner 425x425 pixels on Event Website for four months duration  10 min. speaking slot at the award ceremony  3 delegate passes to attend the award ceremony  One full page advertisement in the four issues of Metro Rail Today and Urban Transport Infrastructure magazines along with Q&A (interview) with the MD/CEO/featured story of sponsor company Silver Sponsorship: INR 1,00,000+GST 18% (USD 2000, EUR 1800)  Corporate Logo presence on event back drops.  Corporate Logo presence in all promotional materials.  One Digital Banner 425x425 pixels on Event Website for two months duration  5 min. speaking slot at the award ceremony  2 delegate passes to attend the award ceremony  One full page advertisement in the any of two issues of Metro Rail Today and Urban Transport Infrastructure magazines along with Q&A (interview) with the MD/CEO of sponsor company Certificate or Trophy Sponsorship: INR 1,00,000+GST 18% (USD 2000, EUR 1800)  Corporate Logo presence on Certificates or Trophy to be given to winners and participants  One Digital Banner 425x425 pixels on Event Website for two months duration  5 min. speaking slot at the award ceremony  2 delegate passes to attend the summit & award ceremony  One full page advertisement in two issues of Metro Rail Today and Urban Transport Infrastructure magazines Host/Co-Host: Scan QR code for more details

Contact for more information: Ms. Khushboo Parveen Programme Coordinator T: +91 9343558967 E: growbiz@urbantransportnews.com

Mr. Vinod Shah Programme Director T: +91 9716454505 E: admin@urbaninfragroup.com

Office: Urban Infra Communication Pvt. Ltd. 101, Khudi Ram Bose Marg, Pratap Nagar, Mayur Vihar Phase 1, New Delhi - 110091, INDIA

www.urbaninfragroup.com

www.urbantransportnews.com

www.metrorailtoday.com

Kochi became India’s first city to have a Water Metro

he first among the 23 battery - powered electric boats manufactured by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) for Water Metro service has been handed over to the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL). The boat was handed over at a ceremony held at the ship terminal in the Shipyard on December 31, 2021. The boat was named ‘Muziris’. With this, Kochi became India’s first city to have a Water Metro Project. The boat is fully air-conditioned and can accommodate up to 100 passengers. It can be charged within 10-15 minutes. It can gain a speed of up to 10 nautical miles per hour. The boat can be operated in a hybrid way by using both battery and diesel generator. The manufacturing of five boats is underway.

that connects 38 terminals in 76 kilometre length using 78 boats. The estimated cost Kochi Water Metro project is Rs 747 crore. This project is being funded by German bank KfW. On December 4, 2019, Kochi Metro Rail Ltd., Govt. Of Kerala and KfW Bank had entered into a tripartite agreement of accompanying measures for the Water Metro project. In 2035 when fully operational the Water Metro Project shall cater to a daily ridership of 1.5 Lac passengers.

The construction of water terminals also is progressing. Vyttila and Kakkanad terminals are almost completed. It is expected that the construction of High Court, Vypin, Eloor, Cheranalloor, and Chittoor terminals will be completed by April next year. There are facilities to monitor the boat automatically from the operating control centre at Vyttila hub. Such an extensive battery-powered boat service chain is first of its kind in the world, the authorities claimed. Kochi Water Metro is a urban water transport service

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

DIGITALISATION

data analytics, cashless commerce, dashboards and alerts, mobile applications. The Indian Railways has adopted digitalization in all aspects of its functions: passenger data systems, passenger car factory mechanization, predictive maintenance, train signals, ground control systems, procurement, and unreserved ticketing methods. Real-Time Train Information System (RTIS) associated with ISRO is being enforced by the Indian railways for computerised chart

Digitisation of Indian Railways

ndian Railways has the fourth – largest rail grid globally, after only US, Russia, and China. The railway sector of India has 123,542 km of total tracks over a 67,415 km route and approximately 7,300 stations. In the fiscal year ending March 2020, Indian railways took 8.1 billion passengers and hauled 1.23 billion tonnes of freight in FY2020-21. Indian Railways is the single largest employer in India and the eighth-most extensive globally, employing near to 1.3 million people. Developing an innovative environment and user-friendly mobility system is among the main priorities worldwide transportation expansion. Rail transport is acknowledged as an integral component of this process. Meanwhile, a revolutionary advancement in the business environment stimulated by the ICT technologies demands the existing business prototypes and strategies adopted by rail operators to be brought up to date. A comprehensive understanding of digital transformation is essential in developing rail transport in the contemporary economy. Digitalisation, as a continuous cycle of convergence of the physical and virtual worlds, is tied towards cyber-physical systems and is accountable for the creation and transformation in numerous sectors of the economy. The leading technologies and solutions that have accelerated digital transformation in the railway sector are the internet of things, cloud computing, extensive data analytics, and mechanisation and robotics. The transformation to the current necessities of the digital economy is visibly characterised by the emergence of the notion of industry 4.0 as well as lately, Railway 4.0 and digital railway. The fundamental areas determined by the Indian railways for digital transformation include a partnership with technology and logistics partners for technological advancements, passenger-friendly applications, application integration for a cooperative Indian railways platform, freight consumer convenience,

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

preparation and passenger train data. 2700 electric locomotives have been supplied with 3800 diesel locomotives provided with RAMLOT; thereby, automated management charting for 6500 locomotives is being carried out. In a year, a balance of 6000 electric locomotives is to be supplied with RTIS equipment. Through Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) terminals, automated unreserved tickets are made available to passengers at rest stations. This is done through the nearest node station. By enforcing the Modern Train Control system with Long Term Evolution (LTE) based Mobile Train Radio Communication (MTRC) system, Indian Railways is revamping its signal system. The railway implemented Industry 4.0 in modern passenger car factories to increase productivity. Indian railways have also employed drone-mounted cameras and 3D scanning of river beds in 2019 to examine bridges and are designing to utilise drones for rail maintenance in the future. Indian railways have achieved the end-to-end digitisation of procurement procedures. All the processes from the processing of requests, generation on-demand, publication of tenders, tender finalisation, preparation, and the issue of letter of approval, agreements, and changes, an assessment of material by RITES, specialised evaluation of proposals, accountability of supplies, online receipt, and processing of dealer’s accounts, issue of material to consignees are digital. All this is beneficial to purchasing. The Indian Railways has continuously improved its methods and methods by deploying advanced technologies and mechanisms that comply with global benchmarks and regulations. Its long-term goal is to improve functional implementation and consumer satisfaction. *** This article is coauthored by Bhakti Jain and Karishma Sharma.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

URBAN RAILWAYS

KANPUR METRO India’s Fastest Metro Rail Project Commissioned The foundation stone for the construction on the Priority corridor was laid on November 15, 2019 by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath followed by the commencement of the construction work.

ttar Pradesh is a leading state with maximum number of metro cities across the nation with operational metro rail services in five major cities; Lucknow, Ghaziabad, Noida, Greater Noida and the latest to join the list is Kanpur, the industrial capital of the state. In India, massive work over the metro projects is executed in Uttar Pradesh, which has changed the scenario of the transport system within the state. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the commercial run of first 9-km stretch of the Kanpur Metro Rail project on December 28, 2021 and Metro services for the public commenced from early morning of next day i.e. December 29, 2021. Kanpur being the industrial city of Uttar Pradesh has been in dire need of a transport system that could decongest the city from routine traffic snarls and air pollution. UPMRC and RITES prepared the DPR for Kanpur Metro Project, it was sent to the Government of India on 08.01.2019 and approval was received from the cabinet on 28th February 2019.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

The tendering process for Civil construction, construction of Tracks and Via-Duct, Depot, Signalling, Telecom, Rolling Stocks, AFC Gates, Third Rail, Maintenance and Manpower deployment was done at a fast pace. The human resource was recruited in a record time and in-spite of two Covid waves, the targets were met within a stipulated time line. The testing of rolling stocks and their software were done through online monitoring system. The hassle-free process of land acquisition was done with support of local agencies – ADM , state and the central government. The legal compliance was met in sync with the protocols defined by the Government of India. UPMRC team developed a pro-active project delivery model which was utilized to expedite the documentation process and augmentation of necessary logistics at the metro stations. With dedication of the team, support from all the concerned agencies and an able guidance of Managing Director Shri Kumar Keshav, the Kanpur Metro train operations commenced ahead of New Year 2022 within a record time of 2 years and 2 months. WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

Project Summary • • • • • •

Total Network: 32.4 km Total Lines: 2 Estimated Project Cost: Rs 11,076.48 crores Estimated Time Frame: 5 Years System Type: Mass Rapid Transit System Funding: Govt. of India, Govt. of UP & EIB

from the start of construction works. Underground construction work of Section-I between Chunniganj to Nayaganj of Corridor-I (IIT to Naubasta) continues to progress at a fast pace. The tendering process for the underground section-II to be constructed between Kanpur Central to Transport Nagar and the overhead section from Baradevi to Naubasta is going on and they will also be released soon.

Detailed Analysis • • •

•

Timeline of construction of Metro Rail Project: Revised DPR as per benchmarking done on the basis of various metro rail projects sent to Government of India on January 8, 2019. Approval given by PIB for the project on February 6, 2019 and subsequently approval from central government cabinet was received on February 28, 2019. The construction works on the priority corridor (IIT-Motijheel) of the Kanpur Metro Rail project were inaugurated by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on November 15, 2019.

Major milestone achieved: • • • • • • • •

Construction of the first Pier: December 31, 2019 Start of U-girder construction: January 20, 2020 Beginning of Pier Cap Erection: March 2, 2020 Launch of Double T-Girder Erection: July 25, 2020 Commencement of U-Girder Erection: August 11, 2020 Erection of double T-girder completed: March 14, 2021 Erection of U-girder completed: October 02, 2021 First train set reaches Kanpur: October 27, 2021

The commercial run on the 09 km priority corridor was started within a record time of 2 years and 2 months WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

In order to get the tasks done faster, special strategies were created. For example, in Kanpur, an integrated contract for metro trains and signalling system was done, resulting in saving of time in the completion of tender processes. Not only this, by ensuring the delivery of the first metro train set within 14 months from the date of award of the contract, the pace of the Kanpur Metro Rail project was expedited even more. Kanpur Metro Rail Project will not only develop the public transport system of the city but will also play important role in changing the economic scenario of the city. The operations of the metro services will create new employment opportunities. The trains of Kanpur Metro Rail Project are deriving energy from ‘Third-rail’ running parallel to the tracks. There is no need for poles and wires and other overhead equipment and the structure will look clean and improved in terms of design aesthetics. This will also have an additional benefit as maintenance related problems; electricity supply which gets hampered due to activities like kite-flying, etc. will also be reduced. The First corridor has been divided into four sections- namely the priority section (from IIT to Motijheel); Underground Section -1 (from Chunniganj to Nayaganj); Underground Section -2 (from Kanpur Central Railway Station to Transport Nagar) and balance section (Baradevi to Naubasta).

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

My happiness increases when I observe that the endeavours instilled by our team are giving expected results. The smiles on the millions of passengers who travel by metro and feel secure, safe and comfortable gives me great satisfaction and contentment. My sole aim is to make the lives of the people better. In fact, offering unconditional service to the nation and its people remains the sole motto of my life.

Q&A with Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation In a recent interaction with Metro Rail Today, Kumar Keshav, Managing Director of Uttar Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) shared his experience and talked on some unknown facts about Kanpur Metro Rail project. He also share the story of Kanpur Metro from the construction stage to commissioning of first priority 9-km section of the project. First, kindly accept our heartiest congratulations for opening of Kanpur Metro services to the public within the timeline. How did you feel after completing the second major task of the metro rail project in Uttar Pradesh? I am feeling happy and contented after the inauguration of the 9 KM priority corridor of Kanpur Metro. Our UPMRC team, contractors, consultants, vendors and labourers have displayed immense hard work in delivering the project within the stipulated timeline. I also thank the central government, state government and other local government agencies for supporting us in achieving this goal. The trial run of Kanpur Metro commenced on 10th November 2021 which is a significant achievement. This milestone has been achieved in a record time of less than 2 years.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Kanpur Metro is the fastest constructed metro in India and its revenue operations have been kick started on 28th December 2021 in just 2 Years 2 Months. After the commencement of commercial operations from IIT Kanpur to Motijheel, the work on the remaining 14.09 KM corridor from Chunniganj to Naubasta and Agriculture University to Barra-8 (8.6 KM) is going on at a fast pace. I am sure that we would commission both the corridors by end of year 2024. The construction work on the 6 KM priority section of Agra Metro – Taj East to Jama-Masjid Metro Station is also going on at an expedited pace. In the priority corridor there will be 6 metro stations. The Taj- East Gate, Basai, Fatehabad metro stations will be elevated and Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Jama Masjid will be underground. The entire length of the Agra Metro Rail Project is 27 KMs. My happiness increases when I see the smiles on the millions of passengers who travel by metro and it gives me gives me great satisfaction and contentment when I see them experience a secure, safe and comfortable public transport. My sole aim is to make the lives of the people better. In fact, offering sincere service to the nation and its people remains the sole motto of my life. You have been associated with the rail & metro industry for more than 35 years, kindly share some information about your academic & professional journey?

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

INTERVIEW

I am a gold-medallist from IIT- Kanpur (M.Tech) and IITRoorkee (B.E.), took over as Managing Director of the Company (UPMRC) on 18th August, 2014 and soon commenced works on 27th September, 2014. I worked earlier as Director (Projects & Planning) at Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and have been credited with the successful completion and commissioning of various important corridors in Delhi Metro under the able guidance of Dr.E.Sreedharan. He held the prestige of the nation high during the XIXth Commonwealth Games, 2010 when he commissioned Central Secretariat -Badarpur Metro project on 3rd October, 2010 – just on the day of start of the Commonwealth Games - when approximately 70,000 people travelled by Delhi Metro to reach the main venue of the global sporting extravaganza - the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. I have executed various projects in a record time. In this line, adoption of new initiatives and innovations, speed of deliverance within a stringent deadline and the sanctioned budget, have been ensured to deliver Lucknow Metro project within a stipulated timeline. To get in sync with the set of goals, similar line of action has been planned for Kanpur and Agra Metro Rail Projects.

I have executed various projects in a record time. In this line, adoption of new initiatives and innovations, speed of deliverance within a stringent deadline and the sanctioned budget, have been ensured to deliver Lucknow Metro project within a stipulated timeline. To get in sync with the set of goals similar line of action has been planned for Kanpur and Agra Metro Rail Projects. I have chalked out different strategies and steered a team of professionals towards fastest completion of the ‘Priority Corridor’ of the Lucknow Metro project, within a record time of less than 3 years, a feat which no other metro project achieved in the past. The 15 KMs corridor of Gorakhpur Metro Lite Rail also got approval from Public Investment Board on 29th November 2021 and in the coming months, the construction work may be inaugurated between Shyam Nagar to Madan Mohan Malviya College. WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

Most of the cities are facing issues in implementing metro rail projects due to covid pandemic, fund, policy and land related issues in India. Even, India's first & oldest Metro project i.e. Kolkata Metro is also working on snail's speed. Despite two waves of Covid, you were able to complete the Kanpur Metro project on time. How was it possible? In-spite of two Covid waves; UPMRC team, vendors, contractors and labourers instilled their best endeavours to deliver the priority corridor of the Kanpur metro within the stipulated time line. UPMRC faced various hurdles pertaining to migration of labour workforce to their villages during COVID crisis. To address this issue, UPMRC in a proactive approach, constructed a labour colony inside casting yard that provided accommodation, kitchen and 24 hour medical facility to help them earn their living all the while living in a safe environment. This helped greatly in re-gathering the entire labour workforce and the construction work resumed after approvals from the government. The necessary approvals were also expedited at a fast pace with the help of legal team, consultants and continuous support of the state and the central government. With an aim to commence the commercial operations of the Kanpur Metro, special emphasis was given to recruitment and training of human resource. The newly recruited manpower was trained to handle technical operations. Psycho-metric tests were conducted in a record time and professional grooming training was imparted to prepare them for their job. As the result of this, UPMRC has been able to kick start the commercial operations of Kanpur Metro within the targeted time span. In terms of rolling stock, the delivery was done in 60 weeks whereas the standard time for delivering the rolling stocks was 64 weeks. Timely delivery of rolling stocks was an achievement in itself. The components of the metro train which were earlier imported from foreign countries were manufactured and made in India. The real time monitoring of the rolling stocks was done through online mode. The components were ordered from local vendors which led to the timely testing and placement of rolling stocks on the priority corridor. The hardware, heavy machines, maintenance machinery for refurbishing the wear and tear of the rolling stocks was installed in the depot in a record time. Besides, before the commencement of trial run and commercial operations; rigorous testing of braking system was performed exclusively at the in-built technical facility of depot. The credit for the installation of signalling equipments, braking system testing, third rail and other hardware goes entirely to the hardworking and dedicated team of UPMRC, vendors, contractors, labourers and consultants. A fast track model for timely deliverance of the rolling URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

stocks and other logistics was already developed by the team of planners, engineers and strategists in advance. This collective effort of planning and implementation of the strategies on the ground was hence forth pro-actively developed at an advance stage. This smart planning helped the team to turn the dream of running the metro in Kanpur into a reality. The components like third rail bracket which were earlier imported from foreign vendors were ordered from local vendors. UPMRC thus complied well with the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ and Vocal for Local. The Third rail traction power system was installed in a short span of time. Line charge up, work on track and traction was done simultaneously with meticulous planning and coordination. The traction system approval from Ministry of Railways through RDSO was also obtained in due time by quick response to their queries. We heard that you have adopted and applied some new innovations and technologies during construction and execution of the Kanpur Metro project to make it more sustainable, safer and energy-efficient. Kindly highlight some new innovations and technologies implemented in Kanpur Metro to make it unique from other metro projects? How is it different from the Lucknow Metro Rail project? Yes, it is true that we have implemented various innovative techniques in the Kanpur project. Double T-girder: Kanpur Metro is the first Metro project in the country to use Double T-girders for the construction of concourse level of elevated Metro stations. This innovation helped in achieving the milestone of construction of Concourse of all 9 Metro stations of the Priority Section from IIT Kanpur to Motijheel in a record time of 7 months and 17 days. Twin Pier Cap: For the first time in India, the innovative use of Twin Pier Cap has been done instead of portal arrangement to provide support to Depot Exit/ Entry line and Automatic Coach Wash Plant under Kanpur Metro Rail Project. This has helped in creating space for smooth flow of traffic and also enhancing the aesthetic beauty of the constructed structure. Inverter in the Third Rail Traction System: Presently there are Third Rail ‘DC’ Traction Systems in Bangalore, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Gurgaon Rapid Metro projects in India and now Kanpur Metro trains will also operate with the same traction system. The DC traction system of Kanpur will be different and special from the rest because for the first time in India, under the Kanpur Metro

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

(Double-T Girder first time used in Kanpur Metro)

project, the Third Rail DC Traction System will have a special inverter, which converts the energy generated by the braking of the train from DC to AC, which will be used in metro systems. In DC traction system, manual Short circuiting device is used in Bangalore, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Gurgaon Rapid Metro projects in India for ensuring safety during maintenance. Kanpur Metro will be the first metro system in India to use automatic Short Circuiting and Earthing device during maintenance which will be operated remotely from Operation Control Centre (OCC) through SCADA. Camera in Rolling Stock for monitoring of Third Rail Traction System: Rolling stock of the Kanpur Metro Rail Project is the first rolling stock in the country, which will be equipped with the camera for monitoring of third rail system. This will help in surveillance and maintenance of the third rail in the metro system. The Kanpur Metro Polytechnic Depot is equipped with advanced technology and all necessary systems for stabling of the metro trains and their maintenance. The metro trains are monitored and operated from the Operations Control Centre set up in the Depot. The Depot is equipped with zero discharge facility, which means that the waste water being generated in the Depot will not be disposed; rather it will be recycled completely and will be used for various purposes. Keeping in mind the idea of treating every drop of waste water, a STP (Sewage Treatment Plant) with a capacity of 10 thousand litres per day and an ETP (Effluent Treatment Plant) with a capacity of 70 thousand litres per day has been constructed for the same. The trains for Kanpur Metro have been made using advanced and ultra-modern technology. The safety and comfort of the passengers has been kept at utmost importance. The trains are equipped with CBTC (Communication Based Train Control) system, which is to be used in ATO (Automatic Train Operation) mode. This WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

INTERVIEW

will ensure energy conservation and protected train operation. Apart from this, the trains will also have carbondioxide sensor based air-conditioning system, which will aid in saving energy during metro operations.

set time. For instance, in Kanpur, a combined contract was awarded for Metro Trains and Signalling system, which lead to decreased time in carrying out the tendering process.

Kanpur Metro’s 9 km long priority corridor has been certified with the ISO 14001 certification for environment management and with ISO 45001 certification for safety management. All stations of priority corridor are green certified with platinum rating of IGBC (Indian Green Building Council). The ISO Certification, execution of the project all procedures pertaining to environment conservation and safety management are being followed as per set protocols. Along with this, timely review is also conducted to ensure that safety and environment issues arising during project execution are being redressed and mitigated. After all the points have been catered to, ISO Certifications are awarded and Kanpur Metro Project has been successful in obtaining ISO certification.

In Lucknow Metro, you have adopted the 25 KV AC OHE traction system while 750VDC Third Rail traction system has been adopted for Kanpur Metro. What are the reasons behind adopting a different traction system for the Kanpur Metro? What are the major benefits of 750VDC over 25KV AC OHE traction systems?

Including the stations of both the corridors of Kanpur Metro, Metro Depot and 32.4 km long viaduct, it is estimated that 15 lakh litres of water will be conserved through rain water harvesting. Every second span in the viaduct will have an arrangement of directing rainwater in the pit situated in the median. Around 180 such rainwater conservation pits have been proposed for the entire priority corridor.

With the revolution and advancement in the Railway’s industry, the utilization and enhancement in the traction system has also upgraded with respect to the time. In Uttar Pradesh, Kanpur Metro became the first to use the top contact third rail methodology, whereas the other projects like Lucknow Metro, Noida Metro have used OHE (Over Head Electrification) as their means to supply electricity. A third rail is a method of providing electric power to a railway train, through a continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway track. It is used typically in a mass transit or rapid transit system, which has alignments in its own corridors, fully or almost fully segregated from the outside environment. In most cases, third rail systems supply direct current electricity (750VDC). On most third rail systems, the conductor rail is placed outside of the running rails and the electricity is transmitted to the train by means of a sliding shoe, which is held in contact with the rail. A third rail system offers a number of benefits, including: • eradicating the impact of electromagnetic interference on electrical components • reducing maintenance costs because power supply equipment is virtually maintenance-free with only regular inspections and cleaning required, and • offering high efficiency – a 750V DC system offers a power supply transmission efficiency average of 92-94%.

The trains for Kanpur Metro Project are equipped with ‘Regenerative Breaking’ technique, which will save up to 42 percent of energy. For instance, if there are 1000 units of energy being consumed for train operation, the train will restore 420 units of energy through regenerative breaking system, which can be used for train operation again. The lifts will also be equipped with regenerative breaking system, and will save up to 37 percent of energy. To ensure maximum energy conservation, all metro stations and depot will have 100 percent LED lighting. Solar panels are also to be installed in the stations and the depot premises. Elaborate plans and strategies were adopted to complete the construction work of Kanpur Metro Rail Project in

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Few of the advantages, why third rail is used in Kanpur Metro are: 1. Third rail is cheaper to construct (Helped in timely meeting of the target delivery date) 2. Easy to build (no additional pole or wire is required) 3. Simple to maintain (no use of additional vehicle like CMV, no additional maintenance of weight, due to thermal expansion or contraction) 4. Efficient for low voltage systems (Runs over 750VDC). 5. Good for short runs. 6. There is much less visual intrusion on the environment. 7. It faces no intrusion due to activities like kite-flying, etc. and thus, does not hamper the operations. WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

INTELITECH ENGINEERING AND CONSULTANCY SERVICES PVT. LTD. !! Expertise in Managing Organisation and Complex Projects !!

Design & Engineering Transport system, Depot & Workshop, RSE, P&M, Station Integration, Buildings , E&M

Project Management Highway, Railway, Metro, Real Estate and Manufacturing

Human Capital Management

Talent Acquisition and Management, Compliance, L&D, Payroll

Advisory and Consulting Strategy , development and implementation

Intelitech Today

Success rate >95%

Presence in >20 sectors

Strong team of experts

We support business transformation to uplift Sustainability… Advisory & Consulting Infrastructure and Logistic

1. Process

Financials Institution

2. People

Business Sustainability IT & Digital Services

4. Technology

3. Organization

Health and social Sector

FMCG & Manufacturing

Visit us: www.intelitechecs.com, Email: contact@intelitechecs.com Call: +919971890042, 9315411088, +971554783291

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Kanpur Metro has received overwhelming response from the public. What are the future plans for Kanpur Metro and when will the entire phase complete? Kanpur is a densely populated industrial city of Uttar Pradesh. With the population of over 35 lacs, it is going to benefit the residential areas, schools, hospitals, colleges, universities and businesses operating in array of segments. Kanpur metro will decongest the areas witnessing traffic congestion. It will save time and money of the commuters. The pollution level will come down; thus, cutting down the carbon foot print from the air. It is safe and secure mode of transport for children and women. With state-of-the-art infrastructure, Kanpur metro will offer comfort and world class services to the people of Kanpur. As we know, we are living in the times when pandemic has caused havoc in the world and we are taking stringent precautionary measures to ensure safety of the people. The trains and stations are sanitized regularly. Markings are made to ensure social distancing in the trains and metro stations. In comparison to other modes of transport, it is definitely the safest way to travel from one destination to another. Kanpur Metro team has taken an important step in the direction of timely execution of the project by inaugurating the construction of D-wall panel for Naveen Market Underground Station and Casting work of pre-cast structures for Underground Section -1 in HBTU casting yard, on 11th October 2021. Tunnel construction work using the Tunnel Boring Machine will also commence very soon.

Anything else, you want to share with us in respect to upcoming metro rail projects in Uttar Pradesh? On 29th November 2021, Public Investment Board approved the phase one of Gorakhpur Metro Lite Rail Project. After PIB’s approval, the proposal will be further sent to Central –Cabinet. Under the approved phase 1 of the Gorakhpur Metro Rail Project of 15.14 KMs; 14 metro stations have been planned to pass through Shyam Nagar to Malviya Engineering College. This corridor will ease out the pressure on densely populated pockets of Gorakhpur. A depot will also be developed near Shyam Nagar Metro Station where real time management of metro operations and its maintenance will be done exclusively. According to the DPR, Rs 2670.37 Cror will be the estimated cost for constructing Corridor – 1 of Gorakhpur Metro Rail Project. The entire corridor will be elevated. This project will be funded jointly through Equity share contribution of Central Government and State Government. In addition, soft loans will be obtained from bilateral / multilateral - external financial institutions and the same contribution of Rs 200 crore will be made by the local bodies. Considering the increasing population graph and routine traffic problems; the State Government envisioned a ‘Smart Transportation System’ in the form of Metro Rail Lite. The Metro Rail Lite proposed for Gorakhpur will have 3 low floored coaches with the transportation capacity of carrying 400 passengers in a single commutation ride. The Metro Lite Rail will draw power from third rail and its maximum speed will be 60 KMs per hour.

Are you also planning to launch 'Smart Card' for Kanpur Metro passengers in line with GoSmart Card being used by Lucknow Metro commuters? Yes, in a few months, the ‘Smart Card’ for Kanpur Metro will be launched by UPMRC. The smart card holders will get 10 per cent discount and journey by a metro will come easy on pocket for the passengers.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

The implementation of the Gorakhpur Metro project will be done by the Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) and will be 4thsuch project in the league which will be operationalised under the auspices of Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation. ***

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

Dr. Amudhan Valavan Independent Director MTC Chennai

2022: Birth of an Era for Empowered Women in Transport

omen constitute almost 50% of the total population in India. They are the key agents to achieve economic, environmental or social growth of the country. Despite this, women are discriminated and considered weak as compared to their male counterparts, especially in the rural and semi-urban areas. Even if she desires to break the glass ceiling and improve her social status, limited access to credit, education and healthcare surface as a hindrance. Although the need for women empowerment by providing equal rights to participate in society, education, skill development and employment can’t be denied any longer. Even in the current era Public Transport is a maledominated sector that contains gender gaps throughout all levels of the workforce. Gender gap can be defined as the unequal outcomes experienced between women and men in the workforce, and women’s restricted access to rights and assets. More broadly, male dominated sectors consist of industries and occupations where women comprise less than 25% of job incumbent’s .They reflect a more traditional workplace, one created, maintained and controlled by males since inception. Progress in closing most gender gaps is slow. The gender gaps with respect to key labour market indicators have not narrowed substantially for the past 20 years. Differences remain in employment rate, part-time work, unpaid care and family responsibilities, professions and decision-making positions, working conditions, wages, and the possibilities for economic independence between women and men.

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals GOAL NO.5: GENDER EQUALITY Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls TARGETS: 5.5. Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life

INDICATORS: 5.5.1. Proportion of seats held by women in (a) national parliaments and (b) local governments INDICATORS: 5.5.2. Proportion of women in managerial positions

Global & Indian Statistics in Female representation in Transport Industry In the European Union, only 22% of the labour forces in transport services are women, compared to 46% in the general economy. In Air Transport the share of women is 40%, almost double the average for all transport services. This large female presence in the air sector is due to flight attendants and various ground services dominated by women, such as check-in and customer services. But at the same time, some employee groups, such as pilots, are heavily dominated by men. The situation in other transport sectors is much worse: indeed, the percentage of women is 20% in water transport and only 14% in land transport. The situation doesn’t improve in the urban public transport sector, with an average 17.5% of female employees.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WOMEN IN TRANSPORT

The share of women’s participation in the transport sector also differs by mode. For example, the employment rates in the railway industry in the United Kingdom are 16% female and 84% male, even though 47% of its national workforce is female (Women in Rail, 2015). In the European Union’s urban public transport sector, women account for approximately 18% of total employees on average, ranging between 5% to 31%, but represent less than 10% of drivers (WISE, 2012).

The barriers which could account for the low number of women employed in the sector: • “Contextual barriers” of work organisation in the sector, for example rolling shift work; • “Barriers of inadvertence” related to shortages of equipment, for example the lack of facilities, and • “Barriers of discrimination” based on stereotypes and a male working culture leading to a lack of recognition and support

According to the policy, the rural and urban female labour force participation rate (FLFPR) in Tamil Nadu is 35.1% and 23.6%, which is higher than the national average by 15.4% and 7.5%, respectively. Female participation in various Central government jobs is as low as 10.93 per cent out of a total 30.87 lakh employees.

Why are women under-represented?

Figure 1

The main causes of the under-representation of women in the transport workforce are the harsh working conditions, a stereotype masculine image of the transport sector, security problems (particularly in the night -time urban transport sector), recruitment and reconciling work and private life. “The gender related stereotypes still occur in various modes and in general there is a typical male work culture. There are records of quite a number of experiences of women seafarers and their difficulties in pursuing a career at sea. Several women denounced being victims of sexism from staff at their training institutions and many women also reported problems with some male colleagues of sexual harassment.”

Barriers to the women in Public Transport Jobs : Regarding women’s recruitment and employment, various factors have been identified as barriers. The most important emerge from a survey carried out in railway companies and trade unions. It seems that the physical effort required in some jobs induces companies to be sceptical about employing women and discourages them from applying for a job position. On the one hand, gender-related stereotypes and prejudices are still largely common in European railway companies and the typical male work culture prevails. On the other, working in a railway company does not appear attractive to many women because of shift work and spatial mobility (e. g. for locomotive drivers, conductors/on-board personnel), which represent barriers for women with caring responsibilities. Finally, health and safety at work and hygiene issues (e. g. the lack of appropriate infrastructure for women, such as separate toilets or toilets at all, for instance, on board freight trains) represent other major barriers to female employment, even if they seem relatively easy to overcome.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Why we need to add more participation of the women in Public Transport work force? Gender diversity in the workplace does not only benefit women. Mounting evidence shows that it is a benefit to societies, economies, the environment and enterprises themselves. Greater gender equality or diversity in the transport workforce will not only address the discrimination women face in the workforce as a matter of human rights and fundamental principles and rights at work, it will also create more economic efficiency leading to poverty reduction. Poverty rates are higher for women than for men on a global level, in both urban and rural areas (World Bank, 2018). Existing gender inequalities also make women and girls more vulnerable than men and boys to poverty (World Bank, 2011). Increasing women’s participation in the workforce could thus play an important role in poverty reduction. The five Priority Areas to improve women participation

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WOMEN IN TRANSPORT

in Public Transport are given below: 1. Increasing female labour market participation and equal economic independence; 2. Reducing the gender pay, earnings and pension gaps and thus fighting poverty among women; 3. Promoting equality between women and men in decision-making; 4. Combating gender-based violence and protecting and supporting victims; and 5. Promoting gender equality and women‘s rights across the world. Despite the benefits of gender equality in the transport workforce, women who decide to pursue a career in the transport sector encounter severe challenges. Studies have shown that such challenges can be broadly categorised into seven groups, 1) Work organisation (e.g. opportunity to do part-time work, or teleworking); 2) Work-life balance (e.g. parental leave, childcare); 3) Health and safety at the workplace; 4) Working culture; 5) Wages; 6) Career, Qualification and Training 7) Recruitment. Attracting women to the sector can help companies to recruit new staff, improve work-life balance, and ensure better working conditions for both genders. Women bring additional skill sets to the industry, from communicative skills to their ability to diffuse potentially volatile situation; thus we see the emergence of a new and better quality of public transport. Many International Organisations related to Transport like UITP, ITF agreed that strengthening the women employment in transport sector is to benefit of the whole sector, the companies and their employees. •

•

• •

More women means more talents integrated in the company , a broader view on innovation , more additional and complementary skills like people orientation or communication skills of women. More women working in typical made dominated sectors usually improves the working conditions for all; it contributes to a better work environment and sense of respect and thus an improvement of the attractiveness of the job. The demographic change creates problem for companies and they cannot afford to do without women. It is a matter of equal opportunities more women in Public Transport contribute to enhance the image of the Public Transport firms and the transport sector.

Even though, there is a lack of gender diversity in technical and operational divisions, and in management positions. The representation of women is high in administration and customer service. The public transport sector does not

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

currently provide women with adequate training opportunities and representation in unions. They are subject to poor working environments, safety and health concerns, lack of facilities, including decent sanitation facilities, as well as violence and harassment from colleagues and passengers. To attract and retain women to the sector a bundle of activities in different areas are necessary, which are mentioned here with some concrete examples:Recruitment policy: Address and welcome specifically women directly into the company. Negotiation of a recruitment procedure between the trade unions and workers’ representatives. Qualification and training: Recruit young women for professional education, assure equal access for women to vocational training and avoid a “glass ceiling effect”. Work-life balance: Introduce working time models that allow a better reconciliation of work and social/family life which include instruments allowing for the integrating of individual‘s wishes and needs. Health and safety at work: Adapt occupational health & safety, workplace ergonomics, workplace security, and provide appropriate facilities like toilets, canteens, lockers, break rooms and changing rooms. Equality in wages: Analyse the “gender pay gap” and develop policies to eliminate it. Working culture and gender stereotypes: Change the corporate cultures from a male working culture to a diversity culture, sensitise the management on gender stereotypes and unconscious bias and include management, trade unions and workers representatives in the activities. STU’s policies: Set clear & measurable targets and develop instruments to implement them with a top-down approach. Promoting employment by preventing violence against women transport workers Decent Work in Transport for women: Transport jobs can be well paid, rewarding and offer long term career opportunities. Unfortunately, and unacceptably, few women are employed in these jobs and some positions fall below the standard of decent work. One of the barriers to a career in transport is workplace violence. Why action is needed for the violence against women? • Jobs in the transport sector are highly gendered and unequal, as is access to transport services. As a result,

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

women’s voices are all too often neglected when it comes to transport planning and the pursuit of decent work. • Transport is still regarded as ‘no place for women’ in many countries/sectors around the world. Women in the transport sector often find themselves stuck in low(er) paid/low(er) status jobs with few, if any, opportunities for career development. • Violence against transport workers is one of the most important factors limiting the attraction of transport jobs for women and breaking the retention of those who are employed in the transport sector. What constitutes violence at work? Violence can be defined as a form of negative behaviour or action in the relations between two or more people. It is characterised by aggressiveness which is sometimes repeated and sometimes unexpected. It includes incidents where employees are abused, threatened, assaulted or subject to other offensive acts or behaviours in circumstances related to their work. Violence manifests itself both in the form of physical and psychological violence. It ranges from physical attacks to verbal insults, bullying, mobbing, and harassment, including sexual and racial harassment. External violence – workplace violence committed by external intruders who have no legitimate relationship with the workplace and who have undertaken criminal acts such as vandalism, robbery, sabotage or terrorism; Service-related violence – aggressive acts by customers or clients of a service or a business; Internal violence – aggressive acts by current or former employees or other persons with an employment-based relationship with an organisation (this includes workplace bullying and harassment); and Organisational violence – involves organisations placing their workers in dangerous or violent situations or allowing a climate of bullying or harassment to thrive in the workplace.

Figure: 2 : Women’s Career Cycle in the Transport Sector

Technically speaking, harassment, bullying and violence are also ‘gender-intensified’ barriers to working in the transport sector – men are bullied, harassed and subject to violence at work as well as women – but in practical terms it needs to be addressed as a ‘gender-specific’ problem. Transport records one of the highest levels of violence towards employees and this issue proved to be the main concern raised by women during the research for this ILO study. While the devastating effects of violence towards women are evidenced across all transport sectors and countries throughout the world, the root causes and perpetrators (e.g. co-workers, customers, supervisors, and managers) will differ and therefore demand sector-specific and country-specific policies to address this problem. Training to address workplace violence in the transport sector could include: • • •

As a consequence of jobs being defined as ‘men’s work’ and women being underrepresented in the very institutions that might initiate some change, poor working conditions prevail and women are continually disadvantage by out of date structures, workplace arrangements and attitudes. Examples of ‘traditionally male’ transport jobs are listed in Table 1, alongside various roles that have been ‘feminised’ and/or ‘opened’ to women. Transport Mode Urban Transport

Traditionally Male Bus drivers

‘Feminised’ or ‘opened’ to women Tram (and bus) drivers

Table 1: : Male and female jobs in the transport sector

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

• • •

Improving the ability to identify potentially violent situations; Improving the capacity of event appraisal, active coping and problem-solving; Instilling interpersonal and communication skills that could prevent and defuse a potentially violent situation; Enhancing positive attitudes towards creating a supportive environment; Assertiveness training, as required, according to risk assessment; Self-defence training, as required, according to risk assessment.

Involving Self Help Groups in Transport Women in rural areas are now able to create independent sources of income. While there were many young semiliterate women who have home-grown skills, the absence

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WOMEN IN TRANSPORT

of capital and regressive social norms prevents them from taking a full plunge in any decision-making role and setting up their own independent business. The self-help group movement has been one of the most powerful incubators of female resilience and entrepreneurship in rural India. It is a powerful channel for altering the social construct of gender in villages. Women in rural areas are now able to create independent sources of income. If we are engaging the women as part time while in Peak hours in Ticket counters, Ticket Validators in Express/Mofussil Bus Services than appointing the conductors as full time, the establishment cost will be considerably reduced.

•

Recommendations & Conclusions It is possible to identify a number of specific opportunities for action to promote women participation in transport as detailed below: • Encouragement needs to be given to address equality issues in STU policy. • Identify the challenges and barriers to women in the transport workforce, and ultimately improve the level of gender equality in the sector • Encouragement needs to be given to the various transport sector skills dialogues and such initiatives as the Transport Planning Skills Initiatives, Customer Care centres, and Ticket Checking Inspection areas are to explore further the gender imbalance in their sectors. • Working conditions in transport, most notably working time and working away from home, can push women out of the industry. Provision for Rule to woman in Flexible working patterns, extended hours, variable start/finish times, shift-work, and 24x7 operations (sometimes for 365 days a year) . • Our Government should form the policies in STU’s ,are relevant to the education and training, hiring and retaining of women, as well as labour laws that can set a legal framework for gender equality. Specific examples, such as the female labour force participation rate, gender parity index for tertiary education enrolment, STEM academic disciplines’ female tertiary attainment rate, maternity leave and equal pay law. • The government has taken several measures to increase representation of women in the government jobs, which inter-alia includes maternity leave for 180 days, child care leave for 730 days, child adoption leave for 180 days, special allowance for women with disabilities and exemption from payment of fee for examination conducted by Union/State Public Service Commission and Staff Selection Commission, etc. • As the establishment cost is more when compared to other variable costs. It is hereby suggest to involve the women self-help groups in doing the ticket validating process in bus stops for Mofussil Buses (Operation between District Capitals) and Express Services (Operation Between more than 250 Kms),establishment cost will be considerable reduced in appointing full time conductors for the buses.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

•

As with many aspects of work and employment in the transport sector, this is a ‘gender intensified’ barrier that would benefit men but especially women if more adequately addressed by the social partners and the state. The burden on women of combining productive and reproductive responsibilities inevitably affects their ability to retain employment and has an impact on relationships within the household (e.g. calculations to determine whether men or women will realise a greater financial return on investments in human capital). Any society or sector that desires to improve the employment prospects of women must address all dimensions of work life and not disadvantage women because of their multiple productive and reproductive roles. If working conditions are attractive, and there are opportunities for training and development, then women are more likely to build a career in the transport sector. To do this requires on-going training and development, which companies are often reluctant to offer to women because of anticipated interruptions to their career.. For too many women in the transport sector, jobs do not develop into careers – they remain stuck in lower paid, lower level positions, denied the opportunities for progression available to men and therefore more likely to quit or have little or no desire to return to the sector after a period of interruption.

Precise Takeaway With the achievement of women participation in transport, it is clear that the provision of public transport policies and services which meet the needs of women will not only satisfy the needs and aspirations of the majority of public transport users - i.e. women, they will also tend to make its use more attractive to men and children as well. What has all too obviously not worked is the converse: it has been seen repeatedly that building public transport systems around the needs of men has not tended to produce a system which adequately meets the needs of women. *** About Author Dr. Amudhan Valavan possesses over 28 years of experience in Public Transport and Urban Mobility related fields since 1993. He is an Independent Director of Metropolitan Transport Corporation, Chennai. He is also a senior member of editorial advisory board of Urban Transport News and its publications.

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

liabilities (other than debt) to be retained in AI and AIXL would be equal to the sum of certain identified current and non-current assets of AI and AIXL (excess liabilities to be transferred to AIAHL). The timelines had to be extended on account of the situation arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. In view of the excessive debt and other liabilities of Air India arising out of huge accumulated losses, the bidding construct was revised in October 2020 to Enterprise Value (EV) to allow prospective bidders an opportunity to resize the balance sheet and increase chances of receiving bids and competition. The EV construct allowed the bidders to bid on the total consideration for equity and debt instead of a predetermined, fixed debt with minimum cash consideration of 15% for equity. As per both the original and revised construct, all non-core assets (land, buildings, etc.) are to be transferred to AIAHL and are therefore not a part of the transaction. It has been ensured that the interest of the employees and retired employees would be taken care of.

Govt. of India approves 100% disinvestment from Air India

he Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) - empowered Air India Specific Alternative Mechanism (AISAM) comprising of Union Minister for Home Affairs and Cooperation Amit Shah; Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman; Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia approved the highest price bid of M/s Talace Pvt Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of M/s Tata Sons for sale of 100% equity shareholding of Government of India in Air India along with equity shareholding of Air India in AIXL and AISATS on October 8, 2021. The winning bid was for Rs 18,000 crore as Enterprise Value (EV) consideration for AI (100% shares of AI along with AI’s shareholding in AIXL and AISATS). The transaction did not include non-core assets including land and building, valued at Rs 14,718 crore, which are to be transferred to GoI’s Air India Asset Holding Limited (AIAHL). The process for disinvestment of Air India and its subsidiaries commenced in June 2017 with the ‘inprinciple’ approval of CCEA. The first round did not elicit any Expression of Interest. The process re-commenced on 27 January 2020 with issue of Preliminary Information Memorandum (PIM) and request for Expressions of Interest (EOI). The original construct as per the January 2020 PIM envisaged (i) pre-determined, fixed amount of debt to be retained in AI (with balance to be transferred to Air India Asset Holding Limited (AIAHL) and (ii) the sum of certain identified current and non - current

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

The transaction saw keen competition with seven EOIs being received in December, 2020. Five of the bidders, however, had to be disqualified as they could not meet the requirements set out in the PIM/EOI, even after allowing them an opportunity for clarification. The Request for Proposal (RFP) and draft Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) was issued on 30 March, 2021. Air India provided comprehensive information through the Virtual Data Room to the qualified bidders who were also provided access to inspect the assets and facilities being offered as a part of the transaction. A large number of queries from bidders were responded to. On request of bidders, the bid due date was extended to 15 September, 2021 so that they could complete their due diligence before submission of bid. The final SPA containing detailed terms and conditions and the respective responsibilities to meet the conditions precedent for closing the transaction including release of Government guarantees prior to closing was agreed upon prior to bid submission. Two sealed bids were received on the due date along with non-financial bid documents and bid security from the two qualified bidders. ***

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

OPINION

Opportunities in Engineering Consulting and Infrastructure Sector in India

Sandeep Gulati Regional CEO, South Asia and MD, EGIS India

s we all know, India is currently one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Experts believe that the country is perfectly poised to be the future global epicenter for manufacturing, engineering, tourism and services. The government has realized that the existing infrastructure can come in the way of achieving the country’s ambition to become a leading global economic superpower. To do away with this challenge, the Government has pledged to invest around a trillion dollars towards robust infrastructure development. While the intention and the funds are truly laudable, what we will also need is, a veritable pool of specialists with rich experience and expertise who can deliver sustainable solutions that will cater to the nation’s infrastructure needs.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Talking from an administration perspective, for instance, the Government has allocated Rs 111 crore under the NIP for FY2019 – 25. Sectors such as energy, roads, urban and railways amount to 71% of the projected infrastructure investment in India. The online “holistic governance” system – PM Gati Shakti – aims to reduce logistics costs and boost the economy with a planned National Infrastructure Pipeline. This digital platform connects 16 ministries — including Roads and Highways, Railways, Shipping, Petroleum and Gas, Power, Telecom, Shipping, and Aviation — with a view to ensure holistic planning and execution of infrastructure projects. The initiative will go a long way in enabling various government departments to synchronize their efforts into a multi-modal network. Also, other Government initiatives such as Asset Monetization Scheme and New Guidelines on Procurement, among others, are currently catapulting the Indian infrastructure space in the right direction. Over the last two years or so, the COVID-19 pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges and in many cases, business continuity plans are being put to the test for the first time. While project implementation costs may not get impacted in the long run, but the projects under development are facing undue delays, owing to unfavourable geography, manpower non-availability and impact of the pandemic in and around the project sites. WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

OPINION

There is no iota of doubt about the fact that in order to provide the much needed push to the economy, robust infrastructure is the need of the hour. The launch of coastal roads projects and inland waterways bears testimony to the fact that the government is planning to build alternative modes of transport to help reduce dependency on roads and rail alone for logistics. Engineering Consultancy Services is one of the many consultancy domains that has seen its importance growing, with the thrust on infrastructure services, especially in developing countries like India. Strong and consistent emphasis on self-reliance or aatmanirbharata in India’s economic development programs over the years by the Government of India have enabled the country to build up a huge and versatile cadre of professionals with expertise and skills across a vast and wide-ranging spectrum of disciplines. A sizable part of this workforce makes up the country’s growing consultancy sector which has been offering its accumulated experience and expertise at home and abroad.

parameters are to be considered for a city to be called smart. The Government then formed a panel called Smart PIT (Project Initiation Team) to determine these factors. Egis, a consultancy firm that has widespread experience of developing many smart cities around the globe was chosen as one of the members of this team to develop the framework for smart cities in the country. Egis has extensively worked in establishing Jaipur, Ajmar, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh and Faridabad Smart Cities. Infrastructure is a complex entity and more often than not, problems need to be addressed at multiple levels, and with sustainable solutions. For example, a metro which is meant for smoother transportation is incomplete unless last mile connectivity is offered. Therefore, consultants with experience in similar projects, can offer solutions that are all encompassing. Being an independent third party expert, they can offer unbiased opinions which are best suited for a particular project. In many cases, the reputation of the consultant also adds value to the project.

Since these consultants come with prior experience and exposure in projects, they bring in viable solutions that already exists. This experience saves a lot of time and also help in optimising available resources by reducing wastage. Additionally, since these consultants have knowledge of global projects and industry best-practices, the solutions that they offer are at par with global standards.

Infrastructure is a dynamic and fast evolving domain. As such, there are always better innovations available which can offer sustainable solutions at minimum costs. It is not possible for the clients or their teams to be on top of such developments. The global consultants who are working on these projects on a regular basis can help bridge the gap and ensure that the clients get the best value for the capital invested, through risk minimisation, and leveraging newer technology, engineering and processes.

For instance, when the intention of developing Smart Cities were announced by the Government, there was a lot of confusion on what exactly are smart cities and what

***

India’s International Magazines for Rail, Metro and Transportation Industry

Current Trends that will Shape the Future of Transport & Mobility in India Health & Safety. The first and most obvious trend being an increased focus on health and safety of passengers and workforce. There needs to be better spatial planning, a revisit of travel relaxations, services and service delivery, and the adoption of automation and other technologies for ensuring a health-oriented transport system.

Ashutosh Shukla Director- Transportation and Mobility Schneider Electric India

everal significant patterns have emerged over the last two years. These trends reveal a great deal about how the world will react in the face of anticipated or unforeseen uncertainty. Most importantly, it highlights the shortcomings of existing systems and what must be done to make them more agile and resilient. One of the biggest challenges is the shock to transport and mobility as, managing the movement of large groups of people or volumes of goods will be extremely difficult under current systems. Key Trends Impacting Transport & Mobility This challenge has led to the rethinking of the existing transport and mobility models. It is noteworthy that transportation and mobility have been the precursor of development and evolution. Wherever people have been able to travel, development has followed. However, going forward, the challenge would be to build transport and mobility in a way that it can shape the future. Pertaining to the same, few trends take precedence in the new normal.

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Sustainability. The next important trend is sustainability. While the world has been trying to adopt environment friendly development measures, the focus on sustainability has gone up several fold since the pandemic outbreak. We are witnessing the impact of uncertainties on the global economy, and we understand that climate change would bring about more uncertainties. Hence, there’s a need to switch to cleaner energy and electricity driven ecosystem. The world has to become “All Electric”. Transport and mobility systems which have been associated with huge carbon emissions are increasingly being designed to be sustainable. Digital adoption. Another evident trend which the pandemic has accelerated is the rapid adoption of digital technology. This trend is driven by the need to be agile, resilient, sustainable, and cost-effective. The challenge with transport and mobility systems is that they massively engage people, and they have to cater to a diverse range of human preferences and needs. The Future of Transport & Mobility in India Given the trends what can India do to make its transport and mobility systems more cost-effective, safe, sustainable and effective. The important thing is to rethink our airport and rail networks. Public transport is the way forward, and both these means of mass movement are crucial for global trade and economy. While the airports are highways to the world for any country, today, railways have increasingly evolved into Metro rail systems for intra-city and intercity commutation. The success of independent India’s very first Delhi Metro

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

OPINION

system has triggered a replication of the model in other major cities of the country. The airport and metro systems are going to be an inherent part of smart cities of the future. The inter-state, inter-continental airport and rail networks need to be connected, integrated, and sustainable. Metro is fast emerging as a single most important public transport system handling a large footfall on a daily basis. Its integration within a city and beyond will address several town planning issues and intelligently link systems and people together. Undertaking Transformation – Metro Rail Networks Intelligent transport systems can help completely digitalise Metro rail systems in various Indian cities and integrate them with other means of public and personal transport. It will not only provide travellers with real-time information but can play an important role in crowd management, traffic decongestion, giving insights for ancillary or supporting infrastructure, increase overall cost-effectiveness and security of systems, and amplify automation. Furthermore, using artificial intelligence and data analytics technologies can help metro systems to anticipate and detect possible disruption, system failure or maintenance issues. The intelligent systems can either raise an alarm or initiate corrective action accordingly. Transforming metro rail networks into complete smart systems will only infuse more efficiency, reliability, and flexibility, which can tune itself to ebb and flow of passenger demands.

with minimum effect on continuous passenger traffic. Connected, digitized HVAC systems can ensure continuous monitoring, provide real-time information on system performance, and keep the systems running effectively. Electric ground support equipment (e-GSE). Every airport, especially the major ones, have big investment of diesel GSE for supporting aircraft operations, such as carrying unloading and loading cargo and people. Transforming the fleet of GSE to electric would be a major step for any airport towards carbon neutrality. e-GSE proves to be highly cost-effective, as there is saving on accounts of fuel, low-maintenance, and higher equipment efficiency. Sustainable Microgrids. Major airports use thermal and electrical energy that can power an entire city of 1 lakh people. Smart systems can enable airports to be net-zero by integrating green energy plans with current microgrids, which are self-contained electrical network that empowers airports to utilize electricity as per need and requirement. Integrating these grids with greener electricity generated from renewable sources such as solar and wind can help airports optimize clean energy and facilitate on-site storage, while ensuring optimal utilization of power. From a sustainability perspective, the next few decades will be critical for avoiding climate change by adhering to individual, institutional, and governmental pledges to reduce carbon emissions and transition to cleaner energy sources. This transformation can be accelerated most effectively by new-age technology, which we should be deploying on a war-footing. Additionally, it is critical to emphasise that transitioning mega transport systems such as roads, metros, and airport networks to smart and sustainable systems will result in unprecedented levels of growth and economic development. It is past time for us to embrace smart transportation systems and act as a catalyst for global change. ***

Undertaking Transformation – Airports Airports too can benefit greatly though smart transport systems and can cut down on carbon footprint tremendously through three key measures. Intelligent HVAC. For most airports in India, improving HVAC (heat, ventilation, and air conditioning) is a great way to be more environment friendly. It is estimated around 50% of energy used by airports goes into maintaining HVAC. Through intelligent systems, HVAC can be quickly upgraded with minimal cost investment,

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

Gadkari lays foundation stone of India’s first Multi-modal Logistic Park in Assam

nion Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs Nitin Gadkari laid the foundation stone for country’s first Multimodal Logistic Park at Jogighopa in Assam on October 20, 2021. The Rs 693.97 crore park will provide direct air, road, rail and waterways connectivity to the people. It will be developed under the ambitious Bharatmala Pariyojana of the Government of India. Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal presided over the virtual function, which was attended by Union Ministers of State Dr. Jitendra Singh, Gen (Retd) Dr. V K Singh and Rameshwar Teli; Ministers from the Assam State, Members of Parliaments, MLAs and senior officers from the Centre and the State were also present on the occasion. An MoU was signed between NHIDCL and Ashoka paper mills, Govt of Assam on the occasion for sharing of land and logistics in Jogighopa.

NHIDCL in Jogighopa of Assam, which will be connected to road, rail, air and waterways. This is being developed in 317-acre land along the Brahmaputra. Gadkari said, the first phase of construction is scheduled to be completed by 2023. He informed that works worth Rs 280 crore have already been awarded, including Rs 171 crore for road construction, Rs 87 crore for erecting the structure, and Rs 23 crore for rail lines. The work will begin next month, he said. The Minister expressed hope that this project will provide direct or indirect employment to nearly 20 lakh youth in the State. The Minister added that the distance of 154 km between Jogighopa and Guwahati will be covered by making a 4lane road on this stretch, a 3-km rail line will connect Jogighopa station to the MMLP, another 3-km rail link will connect it to the IWT, and the road to newly developed Rupsi airport will be upgraded to 4-lanes for easier connectivity. He said, the MMLP will have all the facilities like, warehouse, railway siding, cold storage, custom clearance house, yard facility, workshops, petrol pumps, truck parking, administrative building, boarding lodging, eating joints, water treatment plant, etc. ***

Speaking on the occasion, Nitin Gadkari said that his Ministry envisages developing 35 Multi-modal Logistic Parks (MMLPs) in the country, of which work on preparing DPR and feasibility report is underway. He said, SPVs will be formed for all these MMLPs, and professionally qualified CEOs will be appointed for each separately. The first such MMLP is being made by

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

INDUSTRY EVENT CALENDER 2022

Dates

Event Name

Venue

January 20

InfraTalk

Virtual

February 10

Rolling Stock Forum

London, UK

February 15-17

International Railway Summit

Berlin, Germany

March 8-10

IT-Trans

Karlsruhe, Germany

March 9-10

UITP India Urban Rail Seminar

Virtual

March 15-18

Rail Digi Expo

Virtual

March 17-19

RailwayTech

Jakarta, Indonesia

March 23-25

Transport India Expo

New Delhi, India

May 10-12

Railtex/Infrarail

London, UK

May 11-12

Asia Pacific Rail

Bangkok, Thailand

May 11-13

Electrotrans

Moscow, Russia

June 5-9

World Congress on Railway Research

Birmingham, UK

June 15

Rail Infra & Mobility Business Leadership Awards 2022

New Delhi, India

June 22-23

Rail Live UK

Warwickshire, UK

June 28-30

Rail and Metro Infrastructure 2022

Virtual

July 7

Rolling Stock Networking 2022

Derby, UK

August 21-24

International Conference on Railway Technology

Montpellier, France

September 20-23

InnoTrans 2022

Berlin, Germany

October 26

Modern Railways RVE

Milton Keynes, UK

November 4-6

Urban Mobility India Conference & Expo

Kochi, India

November 23-24

Africa Rail

Johannesburg, SA

November 9-10

MOVE

London, UK

Nov 30 – Dec 2

SmartRail Europe

Rome, Italy

WWW.URBANTRANSPORTNEWS.COM

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE JANUARY 2022

EDITORIAL CALENDER AND ADVERTISING RATES 2021-22

URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE Issue

Cover Story

Featured

May 2021

Rail Business

Future of Urban Railways

Rail Technology

Innovation in Rail Industry

July 2021

Infra Business

Role of EPC Industry

Construction Technology

Innovation in Urban Infra Industry

Sept 2021

Machinery & Plants

Role of Support Industry

Equipment Market

Automation Equipment

Nov 2021

Green Mobility

Future of Electric Vehicles

Charging Infrastructure

Hydrogen Fuel Technology

Jan 2022

Multi-Model Transport

Mobility as a Service (MaaS)

Role of Micro-Mobility

Year End Review 2021

Mar 2022

Autonomous Vehicles

Role of IoT, AI in Automation

Ticketing & Payment System

Rail & Transport Budget 2022

ADVERTISING RATES 2021-22 CONTENT BASED ADVERTISING

Ad Position

Ad Size (Full Page)

Rate (per insert)

Cover Page

210mmx220mm

₹50,000 ($1000, €900)

Content Type

Rate

Inside Cover Page

205mmx265mm

₹30,000 ($600, €540)

Urban Transport Infrastructure January 2022

Articles inside

Flashback 2021

Editor’s Note