by admin | May 25, 2021 | Business, Corporate, Corporate finance, Large Enterprise
Kolkata : In order to make metro projects across the cities financially viable, metro rail companies are looking to reduce their costs or exploring alternative revenue stream and at the same time, some are monetising their assets to raise funds, officials said on Tuesday.
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Managing Director Mangu Singh said the cost has been brought down to bare minimum and its project cost was lower than that of Kualalumpur’s and Dhaka.
DMRC has signed an agreement with Madhya Pradesh to procure 150 MW of solar power which will fuel its auxiliary power requirements and also reduce power cost, he said.
The corporation is also advising for other metro railway projects in India and Singh wanted to keep the consultancy focus on India at least in the near term.
“We are not going outside (for consultancy) since we have lots to do in India as metros are coming in many cities in India. But in terms of cost, Delhi Metro cost can be benchmarked,” Singh said at an event on Mass Rapid Transportation Systems organised by the Indian Finance Ministry, the Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank, and the Research and Information System in collaboration with Assocham.
For another example, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) has opted method of monetising its assets for raising funds for the 17 km long outer ring metro project worth Rs 4,200 crore.
BMRCL’s Executive Director Deepa Kotnis said it signed an MoU with computer hardware major Intel under which “naming rights” of stations would be provided along with 3,000 square feet commercial space, 1,000 square feet advertising space and the corporation is expected to get Rs 100 crore from this arrangement.
“We are in talks to realtors, hoteliers and IT companies with similar proposals. Talks with different companies are in the different stage. We are trying to monetise our space to the extent possible,” she said.
Air India’s Chairman and Managing Director Pradeep Singh Kharola, who had served as Managing Director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, advocated that design of urban mobility should consider all the transporting modes including metro rail, bus, auto, taxi and others.
He also urged for integration of different modes transport in cities.
Elaborating on how urban mobility provides economic strength of the cities and brings cities’ economic efficiency, he said these projects are capital intensive and costs of these projects are mostly met through long term debts, mostly from the government.
According to him, metro rail services are seven times energy efficient than buses and it is “viable”.
“The biggest problem of metro projects is huge capital cost. How can we finance the project so that capital costs are brought down and spread over longer period of time? Can we leverage the increase in value of properties through which metro passes? This requires changes in legal paradigm,” Kharola said.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Corporate, Corporate Governance, News, Politics
Manish Sisodia
New Delhi : Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Saturday said that the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was refusing to share details of Metro ridership following its fare hike.
Sisodia said that according to preliminary reports, there has been an increase of 65,000 in the ridership of the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses after the fare hike.
“If metro is only for a premium class of Delhi, then what is the point of using thousands of crores of tax money of Delhi’s citizens for it?” he asked.
He questioned why the Centre was not allowing an inquiry into the hike.
The fares were increased from Tuesday despite strong opposition from the Delhi government, which had locked horns with the DMRC over the hike — the second this year.
Addressing the media on Saturday, Sisodia asked why a company like DMRC has a problem with sharing ridership data after the fare hike.
AAP leaders had earlier claimed that increasing fares would result in a fall in ridership.
Referring to an inquiry ordered into the hike, Sisodia said: “BJP should answer this: What did BJP do in the last three years that they have a problem with an inquiry?”
Earlier, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had directed Chief Secretary M. M. Kutty to order an inquiry into the Metro fare hike.
But the central government opposed the move.
“State Government has no authority to make an inquiry into the DMRC’s affairs,” a letter from the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs to Kutty read.
On Friday, the Delhi government said that Kutty refused Kejriwal’s direction to order an inquiry and added that he was working at the behest of the BJP.
The Deputy Chief Minister said that even if the central government does not allow an inquiry, a Delhi Assembly appointed committee will look into the fare hike.
Sisodia said that the metro fare hike was a conspiracy to hide a scam.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Corporate, Corporate finance, Corporate Governance, Corporate Jobs, Employment, Government Jobs, News, Politics
Arvind Kejriwal
New Delhi : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said his government is ready to pay half the grants-in-aid for the next five years to DMRC to avoid a Metro fare hike if the central government is ready to pay the other half.
“As for as your suggestion regarding a grant to DMRC for meeting the gap in their operating finances, my government is willing to bear half the grant if only a matching grant is provided by the Central Government,” Kejriwal said in his letter to Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.
Kejriwal’s letter, dated October 8, further said: “As you know, the central government and Delhi Government are 50-50 owners of DMRC and its equity etc. have been shared in this proportion all along. Let an assessment be made of the financial gap likely to be created on account of the postponement of the second fare hike and we will be able to bear half of it.
“Since the central government bears 100 per cent of loss for Kolkata Metro, I see no difficulty if it bears 50 per cent in case of Delhi. Thereafter, an FFC (Fare Fixation Committee) can be constituted, as suggested by you.”
Kejriwal, through his letter, also informed the central government to his government’s readiness to take over DMRC if it wants.
“If the central government agrees, Delhi government would be willing to take over DMRC. We are confident that we will be able to fund DMRC by improving the efficiency rather than effecting steep fare hikes and provide an affordable means of transport to the people of Delhi.
“However, till that happens, let the spirit of partnership prevail and I do hope that you will find a mutually acceptable solution to the present impasse relating to the second fare hike which we clearly regard as anti-people,” he wrote.
Kejriwal’s reaction came in response to Puri’s suggestion to him to give over Rs 3,000 crore annually to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) if he wants to hold the proposed Metro fare hike.
Puri had said to Kejriwal through his letter dated October 6 that the Metro Act did not allow the central government to put on hold the fare hike. He also noted that the alternative to fare hike was to provide DMRC yearly grants-in-aid for the next five years: Rs 3,040 crore, Rs 3,616 crore, Rs 3,318 crore, Rs 3,150 crore and Rs 2,980 crore respectively.
Puri was responding to a letter from Kejriwal on September 29 asking the central government to put the hike on hold.
The AAP government has opposed the fare hike proposed from October 10. It has locked horns with the Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC) over the impending second hike this year, following the recommendation of the fourth FFC.
The DMRC defended its decision by saying its input costs had gone up over the years and the increase was at par with Metro rails in other cities.
The Delhi assembly will meet on Monday to discuss the proposed hike.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Corporate, Corporate Governance, News, Politics
New Delhi : As AAP leaders continued to oppose the proposed Metro fair hike, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday asked Delhi government representatives in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Board to call for an emergency meeting over the matter.
The AAP government has locked horns with the DMRC over the hike proposed to be enforced from October 10, the second this year. The last hike was effected in May.
Kejriwal directed Delhi government representatives to give notice immediately for convening such a meeting, a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office said.
Earlier in the day, during a meeting attended by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot, Chief Secretary M.M. Kutty, and other government officials, Kejriwal directed Kutty to apprise the DMRC Board about the notice for the sought-for meeting.
“The Delhi government is of the clear view that Delhi Metro’s decision to further burden its commuters, already reeling under the adverse impact of steep fare hike in May, will only result in reduced ridership, forcing them to look for vehicular modes of transport,” the statement read.
In May, the minimum fare went up from Rs 8 to Rs 10 and the maximum from Rs 30 to Rs 50.
Last Thursday, Kejriwal asked Gahlot to find within a week a way to stop the “anti-people” fare hike.
Gahlot met DMRC Managing Director Mangu Singh and asked for putting on hold the proposed hike till the Delhi government completed an inquiry on the matter.
On Friday, the AAP warned of a protest campaign if the DMRC remained adamant on increasing the Metro fares.
The DMRC defended its decision on fare hike by saying that its input costs have gone up over the years, and the increase is at par with Metro rails in other cities.
On Saturday, Kejriwal urged Union Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Puri to direct the DMRC to withhold the fair hike and on Sunday called for an independent audit of DMRC’s accounts.
—IANS
