Apart from the metro in Patna, the Bihar state cabinet led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has approved a proposal for metro transit systems in four more cities, which will improve urban transport in the state.
The metro network will be extended to Gaya, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, and Bhagalpur.
“The proposal to start metro rail in these four major cities was put forward by the urban development and housing department, Initially a feasibility report will be made, then efforts will be made to raise funds. A metro rail corporation will also be formed for the respective cities.” said additional chief secretary S Siddharth.
20 percent of the project cost will be borne by the central and state governments, with the remaining 60 percent coming from financial institutions.
Given Bihar’s challenges with low urbanization and inadequate infrastructure build-out, two key indicators of economic progress, the development of advanced transit projects in the state will signal progress.
With these new approvals, five cities in the state will now have metro rail service.
Currently, work is underway on the Patna Metro Phase-1 project. The project is being constructed at a cost of Rs 13,365.77 crore and its foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 17 February 2019.
The first part of Phase-1 with five stations is expected to be operational by March 2025, and the entire section is expected to be completed by 2027.
The cabinet also approved the proposal submitted by the General Administration Department (GAD). According to this proposal, various bodies including the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) and Bihar Staff Selection Commission (BSSC) will be allowed to conduct a preliminary examination of various recruitment examinations in two phases if a large number of students appear in the examination.
The network is spread over two corridors and 26 stations covering a distance of 30.91 km. Line-1, also called the East-West Line, is 16.86 km long and connects Danapur State and Khemni Chak with eight elevated and six underground stations.
Line-2, the North-South Line, connects New ISBT to Patna Junction railway station with five elevated and seven underground stations and covers a distance of 14.05 km.