Indian government is consistently working towards bringing new reforms and policies for our country according to report of DIPP there are a total of 212 reforms in the pipeline GST, RERA are just to name a few.
The changes were not welcomed by all but will seep into the regular in a few months down the road. Such social disapproval is also faced by the Nagpur metro project. Recently there has been a lot of fuss about whether Nagpur needs a metro or not. The discussions over metro rail have taken peaks in recent times because people are frustrated of the inconvenience the development of the project is causing in daily traffic. Trucks loaded with heave materials blocking the road, people waiting for hours for the road to get cleared, heavy machineries drilling into the ground and creating irritating noises the whole day long have made people angry and sceptical about the Project .The development of this project has also caused a lot of dust on roads, air pollution and in some cases people have even lost their business.
So the question is if not now when will Nagpur be ready for a metro?
Now let’s just go through some basic stats about Nagpur city. It is the Third largest city in Maharashtra, with a population of 35lakhs approximately. It has got MULTI-MODAL INTERNATIONAL CARGO HUB AND AIRPORT NAGPUR Project under construction which is the largest Aviation project in INDIA with a capital cost of 2500cr and is expected to 
generate revenues around 5200cr (aprox). Project is expected to add around 12 million people to the city’s population by means of direct or indirect employment and with this growing economic activity its necessary to plan the infrastructure development so as to support the growth of the city. In addition to the above invested mind boggling figures the vehicle ownership of the city is 84% which leads to traffic congestion in peak hours and hence, the travel time of the commuter increases significantly. This astonishing number of ownership means that much strain on the already scarce fossil fuels.
MY TAKE ON METRO
So is there need of metro?
Yes, metro will divert most of the traffic reducing the congestion, it will drastically reduce travel time by almost 50%, metro will provide comfortable and distraction free movement while using only 1/5th of energy as compared to Road Transport, less consumption of energy will make the ride cheaper. Thus there is need of reliable, affordable, commuter friendly and environmentally sustainable rapid public transport system.
The project is progressing at better rate as confirmed by the officials from Germany’s KFW development bank, which on a recent visit also took a ride from South Airport Station till Khapri. KFW will be funding to the tune of 500 mn EUROS. So far 137mn euros have been provided. “Delays are normal in projects of such size. But in this case, the delays are less than even in the projects being implemented at Germany”, said regional manager (South Asia) of KFW.
Given the above stats the city if not now, does shows a promising future ahead and this will not be possible without the metro project being successful. The city might be facing some problems right now while its construction is in process. However, I personally believe this project will ease the traffic situation that will be created due to the industrialization that is going to take place in further future. The project might also have disturbed some businesses within the city but at same time this project going to create a lot job opportunities where people are going to earn directly or indirectly from this project.
Also Read : Facts about the Nagpur Metro Rail project
