Bhubaneswar, (Odisha Connect): The metro rail project in Bhubaneswar to skip major places of importance in its 1st phase. It means the institutions that adorn importance to the city from the beginning are kept out of reach of the Bhubaneswar metro rail Corporation project.
A detailed project report ( DPR) handover to the govt recently has mentioned that the first-ever metro line will not have a station in the above-mentioned places of importance. It will start from the Biju Pattnaik Airport to reach Trishulia Cuttack and will have 20 stations. This 26 km line will have Capital Hospital, Sishu Bhawan, Bapujinagar, Bhubaneswar Railway Station, Ram Mandir Square, Vanivihar, Acharya Vihar Square, Jaydev Vihar Square, Xavier Square, Rail Sadan, District Centre, Damana Square, Patia Square, KIIT Square, Nandan Vihar, Raghunathpur, Nandankanan Zoological Pak, Phulapokhari among others.
Bhubaneswar as the capital city of Odisha laid its foundation stone on 1st April 1948 for the better administration of the state. At that time, Airport, capital Hospital, the state secretariat, the Legislative assembly, Auditor general office (now CAG), and Soochna Bhawan (now Jaydev Bhawan) are the few institutions that were considered to be the heart and veins of the city among the city dwellers. Even today, people from each and every corner of the state come to these institutions for routine tasks and govt related work. The decision not to have stations on major administrative attractions of the city may make the govt employees and others puzzled.
DMRC after conducting a traffic survey, geotechnical investigation, topographic survey, and environmental & social impact assessments, completed the Detailed Project Report preparation and submitted it to the Chief Secretary in the Bhubaneswar Metro Rail Corporation meeting.
In the meanwhile, Bhubaneswar Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has been notified on 3rd August 2023 and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) & General Manager (Administration) have been appointed.
On 1st April 2023, Odisha Dibas, Chief Minister, Shri Naveen Patnaik, sanctioned Metro Rail connecting Bhubaneswar Airport – Trishulia, Cuttack. This will have further extensions to cover Khordha, Puri, and other areas of Bhubaneswar & Cuttack City. Now on the DPR, the major places are skipped skilfully.