The 36th Board meeting of A.P. Metro Rail Corporation (APMRC) held under the chairmanship of Principal Secretary (Municipal Administration & Urban Development) S. Suresh Kumar on Thursday decided to execute the Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam metro railway projects in EPC mode by engaging general consultants, and permitted APMRC MD N. P. Ramakrishna Reddy to initiate the selection of general consultants in tune with the requirements of multilateral funding agencies like JICA, KfW and AFD.
Mr. Ramakrishna Reddy stated in a press release that the Board of Directors gave its nod to secure the release of funds from the State government for acquiring land in NTR and Krishna districts for the Vijayawada metro rail, and in Visakhapatnam district for the Vizag project.
He ruled out the need to engage interim consultants, having roped in experienced retired officials from Gujarat and Chennai Metro Rail Corporations to do the preliminary work from April 15. The Board agreed not to appoint an executing agency in view of the high cost and certain other disadvantages.
The MA&UD had taken the first step of land acquisition for the two metro projects on March 3, 2025, by authorising Mr. Ramakrishna Reddy to file requisitions thereof as per No.3 of the AP Right to Fair Compensation & Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Rules, 2014.
Published – March 28, 2025 03:16 pm IST
