THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: An all-party meeting held here on Monday decided to go ahead with the proposed high-speed rail corridor project linking Thiruvananthapuram and Kasargod. The meet also gave in-principle approval for the project which is estimated to cost Rs 1,18,050 crore.An initial feasibility study conducted by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) showed that the project was viable both in financial and technical terms. Chandy said that the meeting decided to entrust the DMRC to prepare a detailed project report. “The project envisages to have rail link on elevated platform to a distance of 560 km. About 552 hectares of land was required for the project,’’ he said. As per the plan, the project will start in next April and be fully commissioned by March 2020. The meeting also decided to conduct another meeting to discuss the rehabilitation packages for the persons who would be displaced and other issues connected with the project. Opposition Leader V S Achuthanandan said at the meeting that the State Government should have a clear plan regarding the terms and conditions for loans to be taken from financial institutions for the project and also on land acquisition. The 220 km stretch between Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi is expected to be covered by the train in 42 minutes. The distance between Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode will be covered in 72 minutes. It will take 96 minutes to reach Kannur, 115 minutes to Kasardgod and 124 minutes to reach Mangalore. Chairman and Managing Director of Kerala High-Speed Rail Corporation Ltd, T Balakrishnan, said each train running along the route will have eight coaches and can carry 817 passengers on a trip. He said that the total cost of the project would be about 1,18,000 crore on completion and it could be easily repaid once the project was completed.
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