(Image source from: TheHansIndia.Com)

Vijayawada and Vizag Metro Projects on Back-Burner:- Even after the allocations for Vijayawada and Vizag in the recent budget, the metro rail projects are still uncertain. The Government of Andhra Pradesh is yet to announce the policy about them. A decision regarding the implementation is expected soon. The government proposed the allocation of Rs 10 crores towards the urban development assistance to both the projects and another Rs 3.6 crores was allocated for Amaravati metro rail. A senior official said the government is yet to take a call on this.

The Korea Export-Import Bank (KEXIM) backed off from extending the financial assistance for Visakhapatnam project. The project may go ahead if the Centre allocates funds. The estimated cost for each metro project is expected to be Rs 15,000 crores, it is quite difficult for AP Government to fund the project in this financial crisis. The DPRs of both the metros are submitted long ago. With a revised metro rail policy introduced recently, the Centre directed AP Government to resubmit the metro rail policy.