Irked over the delay in safety clearances for metro rail projects in Jaipur, Chennai and the recent one in Delhi (Mandi House-ITO section), the Centre is mulling setting up of an Independent Safety Certification Agency to expedite the process.
If this agency comes into being, the authority giving safety clearance to the metro projects will no longer remain with the Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (CMRS), a body under the Union Railway Ministry.
In fact, with the CMRS and Delhi Metro at loggerheads over the opening of the (Mandi House-ITO corridor), the Urban Development Ministry has already asked former Delhi Metro chairman E Sreedharan to give his opinion to sort out the matter.
The bone of contention is a 'single-line operation' - the ITO station has no provision for a train to reverse - which CMRS claims is not allowed by the Delhi Metro Act. However, Delhi Metro says that neither the Act nor general rules governing the Capital's Metro system bar single-line operations.
At a meeting with the Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, Urban Development Minister Venakaiah Naidu on Thursday cited cases of Jaipur and Chennai metros. He said Jaipur Metro had sought safety clearance in August 2014 but is still awaiting clearance. Similarly, Chennai Metro has sought rolling stock clearance in August, 2014 which is still pending. Naidu felt that the delay was resulting in non-utilisation of such projects built with substantial investments. At the meet, both Naidu and Prabhu asserted that metro rail safety cannot be compromised but at the same time clearances should not be delayed.
The chairman of Railway Board stated that the Railway Ministry would have no objection for creating such an agency. Union Civil Aviation Ministry, the nodal ministry for railway safety informed that a proposal has been moved for creating two more posts of Commissioners of Metro Safety as against only one at present, the official added.
'Metroman' Sreedharan blamed amendments to the Metro Railways Act in 2009 which had resulted in too much of micro-management of safety issues causing delays. He said, there used to be no such delays in respect of Delhi Metro projects under Phase I and II.
Both the Ministers also felt that on account of rapid expansion of metro rail services in the country, there was a need for a separate Safety Certification Agency for Metro projects and the same should be examined in detail.