The first phase of the Kochi Metro has been completed with the commissioning of the Thykoodam-Petta stretch, announced Minister of State (Independent Charge), Housing & Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri.

The country’s second-largest manufacturer of electric power transmission towers and one of the world’s largest power transmission engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) companies, KEC International Ltd has secured new orders worth Rs 11.92 billion across its various businesses.

The total length of operational metro projects in India presently stands at about 440 km and is growing. Cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Gurugram, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow and the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) where they are already operational, are simultaneously adding on to their existing route networks.

Kochi Metro is the first Indian metro to have communication-based train control (CBTC) signalling system. Our trains are unattended train operation (UTO) compatible.

It is often pointed out that every rupee invested in ramping up railway infrastructure benefits the economy six times over. Therefore, after languishing for nearly 70 years, modernisation of the sector has been put on the fast track.

The Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) and German development bank KfW have inked an agreement on the disbursement procedure and schedule for the -Ç85 million loan (approximately Rs.597 crore) that the bank will provide for the Rs.747-crore integrated water transport project in Greater Kochi area.

The Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) has signed a power purchase agreement with Hero Solar Energy (P) Ltd for 4 MW of solar power for the Metro service which is scheduled for commissioning in the first half of next year.

The DMRC will hand over two stations to the KMRL in August. The stations -û one at Cusat junction and the other at Kalamassery -will have finished structures, sans interior fittings.

Kochi Metro Rail (KMRL) will commence its commercial operations on 18-km stretch from Aluva to Maharaja´s college by June 2016, a top official has said.