Fast-tracking of projects on Chavan's wish list for railways

Putting the Churchgate-Virar elevated corridor and Nerul-Uran railway line project on the fast track were some of the demands made by the state government in its wish list presented to the Union railway minister Dinesh Trivedi on Friday.

Putting the Churchgate-Virar elevated corridor and Nerul-Uran railway line project on the fast track were some of the demands made by the state government in its wish list presented to the Union railway minister Dinesh Trivedi on Friday.

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In a closed door meeting with Trivedi at Sahyadri guesthouse, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan presented his Mumbai-centric charter of demands. Chavan requested the levying of Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) surcharge on suburban passengers, proposed long time ago, to recover the cost of project, said a senior railway official on condition on anonymity.

The CM also wants the railways to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the Churchgate-Virar elevated corridor. The project was announced in the railway budget a few years ago and a detailed technical survey too has been done for the same.

As the much-delayed Nerul-Uran railway line project is going at a snail's pace, the state has requested the minister to approve a revised budget for it. The Rs495 crore project was started by the railways in collaboration with the state and Cidco in 1996.

The state government also tried to give a push to the third phase of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP-III). The plan is to add CST-Panvel elevated corridor via Navi Mumbai airport, CST-Thane elevated corridor, Virar-Diva-Panvel corridor to the project.

"The state wants MUTP-III to be sanctioned in the upcoming railway budget," said a press release issued by the state government.

Twenty-eight MPs including Sanjay Nirupam, Priya Dutt, Eknath Gaikwad and Gurudas Kamat were present at the meeting.

Rajya Sabha members such as Bhalchandra Mungekar and YP Tiwari also attended the meeting.

While Nirupam demanded trains from Bandra to Konkan, Kamat requested that there should be no hike in fares. Dutt asked for development of Kurla station and Gaikwad demanded protection for slums along the railway tracks.