Cabinet meeting: Major decisions expected today
NEW DELHI: The Delhi Cabinet will likely take some major decisions about the Capital's transportation system at a meeting to be held on Thursday.
Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot had already stated that he has directed the Transport Commissioner to put up the file for Phase-IV of Delhi Metro in the Cabinet immediately, adding that "good news" will officially be conveyed to Delhiites in the next Cabinet meeting.
Sources said the Aam Aadmi Party-led government has decided to approve all six corridors of Phase-IV in "public interest."
The government had earlier said that out of the six planned corridors, three were financially unviable, namely Rithala–Narela, Tughlaqabad–Aerocity and Inderlok–Indraprastha corridors.
The 104 km-long Phase-IV project was expected to be completed by 2021 after the Delhi government's in-principle approval to it in February 2016. However, the Cabinet is yet to announce the final decision.
Meanwhile, another major decision could be taken for public transportation, as the procurement of about 1,000 low-floor air-conditioned buses under the Cluster bus scheme could be accorded approval.
The AAP government already had asked the Transport Department's Principal Secretary to prepare proposals for 1,000 low-floor AC buses and to put up proposal in the next Cabinet meet. Last week, the government had discussed the financial viability of the project.
Gahlot had also said that the tender process for 1,000 standard buses have been issued, after clearances from the Delhi Hight Court.
"As many as 1,000 new buses will be added to the DTC fleet to boost the public transport system in the Capital," Gahlot had said.
Furthermore, the government plans to float tenders for 1,000 electric buses by December, with the aim of rolling out zero-emissions vehicles in the next five to six months.
Earlier this month, Gahlot had launched the trial of an e-bus here. The bus – manufactured by PMI Electro Mobility Solution Pvt Ltd, in collaboration with Foton, China – has a capacity of 33 seats, as well as safety features including four CCTV cameras with a panic button, and a DC fast charging facility capable of fully charging the bus within 30 minutes.
"A report will be submitted by Delhi Integrated Multi Modal Transit System in one month and we intend to float the tender for e-buses in December so that buses are available in next five-six months," Gahlot had told reporters.
