State govt gives ₹100-cr boost to MUTP

Mumbai: City’s suburban rail works finally got a shot in the arm with the Maharashtra government on Monday agreeing to disburse ₹100 crore immediately out of the pending ₹1,512 crore towards the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP). The decision comes after chief minister Eknath Shinde and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis met officials from Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC).

This was an important meeting for the city as these projects under different phases of MUTP are meant to augment suburban rail capacity and widen its footprint in the farthest ends of the metropolitan region of Mumbai.

The ₹100 crore is mainly towards implementing MUTP-3A for which funds hadn’t been allotted by the Maharashtra government. In 2022-23, MUTP works received ₹1,851 crore that includes ₹1,073 from the Ministry of Railways and ₹778 crore from the Maharashtra government.

The MRVC is a 50:50 joint venture between the Indian Railways and the Maharashtra government that plans and implements rail projects specifically for Mumbai. It will receive funds for the MUTP-3 and 3A projects with a cumulative total of over ₹44,600 crore.

Some projects include new suburban rail corridors on Panvel-Karjat and Airoli-Kalwa routes, quadrupling of Virar-Dahanu, procuring 238 AC local trains, expansion of Harbour line on Goregaon-Borivali etc.

Sources in the railways said the rail authorities had to convince the state government about the success of MUTP-1&2 in easing public transportation woes in Mumbai.

“The state government has assured that there shall be no dearth of funds for the MUTP projects. This will give the much-required thrust to new rail corridors, procuring new futuristic AC locals and other augmentation works proposed under MUTP,” said a railway official on condition of anonymity.

The break-up of ₹1,512 crore pending from the state government comprises of ₹383 crore under phases of MUTP-2 that started nearly a decade ago and vital rail projects have either been implemented or under implementation stage. Some of them include Thane-Diva 5-6 lines, Harbour line on Andheri-Goregaon, procurement of 72 non-AC rakes, running 12-car trains on CSMT-Panvel Harbour line among others.

Then there is another ₹738 crore under MUTP-3 and ₹391 crore under MUTP-3A that the state government owed MRVC and their projects. No funds have been allocated yet for MUTP-3A by the state government. Sources in the railways claim that during the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi government, these projects suffered as funds were not disbursed.

The source added that the railway ministry was unofficially delaying the process of disbursing funds to MUTP as the state government wasn’t cooperating. As per the latest figures, the Indian Railways have provided funds of ₹5,932 crore while the Maharashtra government has disbursed ₹4,421 crore over the years.