Standardisation of Metro rail system on cards

A high-level committee headed by former Delhi Metro chairman E Sreedharan, set up for laying down norms for Metro rail systems across the country, proposes to suggest to the government uniform standards for station design, platforms and tunnels.

“The panel will spell out the layout of metro stations, platforms, signage and displays, size of tunnels, fire protection systems, disaster management systems, environment-friendly waste management systems and standards for solar panels at stations,” said sources in the government.

"Standardisation and indigenisation will ensure that Metro rail subsystems for all new projects conform to the prescribed standards, thus incentivising manufacturers to plan for long-term investments in the country and set up manufacturing units. This will also bring down the cost of the Metro rail constructions and operations," said a government official.

Report soon

“The committee is expected to submit its report in three months. Based on the specific task of standardisation, Sreedharan can co-opt relevant expert members for a specified period of time,” said an official.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday gave his nod for setting up the panel comprising 10 members, including officials from various Metro rail corporations and the Railways.

At present 490 km of Metro lines are operational in 10 different cities in the country and over 600 km of Metro rail projects are under construction in various cities.

The Centre has already notified standardisation in rolling stock, signalling, track and electrical systems of Metro.