Govt to ink MoU with Burn Standard Co for monorail

She said this before leaving Nabanna on Wednesday evening for inauguration of Durga Puja organised by Sreebhumi Sporting Club at Lake Town.

Banerjee said: “We have taken decision to install monorail in the city. It will connect Budge Budge to Ruby via Taratala, New Alipore and Prince Anwar Shah Road. It will come up at a cost of Rs 4,216 crore.”

She further said that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will be signed between Burn Standard Company Limited and the state transport department for execution of the project to install the monorail.

“Burn Standard Company Limited will be funding the project and the state government will provide land,” she said adding that there would not be any problem over land acquisition as minimum land would be required to construct pillars and elevated tracks would be laid connecting them.

At present it takes more than an hour to reach Eastern Metropolitan Bypass from Budge Budge by road even if there is no traffic jam.

With the completion of the project it would be a journey of a few minutes for the residents of Budge Budge to reach Eastern Metropolitan Bypass.

Again, from Ruby Connector they could avail Metro services. The work for timely completion of the Airport-New Garia Metro project is on full swing.

By 2020 the entire transport system in the city and its adjoining areas would get a new face with completion of all the Metro projects which were sanctioned when Mamata Banerjee was railway minister.

The step to install monorail has been taken to reduce the pressure on road traffic.

Congestion of Budge Budge Road and Diamond Harbour Road in both morning and evening rush hours leads to inconvenience for commuters almost every day.

“Thus the state Transport department is opting for such mode of public transport.

At present, the road space in Kolkata is only 6 per cent of its total area and the traffic department of the city police had also given its opinion in favour of introducing monorail in the city,” said an official of the transport department.

Sources said that the state Transport department also has plans to install monorails in other parts of the city as well.

But the decision in this regard would be taken following a meeting scheduled to be held after Durga Puja.