Now, Metro gets commercial green light

The decision was taken at a high-level meeting of the empowered committee under the Cabinet Secretary on Friday.

It was decided at the meeting to 8220;relax norms8221; for Delhi Metro Rail Corporation DMRC about property development in existing or proposed stations. The DMRC can now use the profit earned from property development to procure rolling stock.

Till now DMRC had to seek the government8217;s permission to develop property on its premises.

A senior government official who was part of this development said the idea behind relaxing norms is to ensure DMRC can fund its own projects and procure stock without waiting for government assistance. 8220;They have been allowed to develop property even in the past but now they no longer need permission from the Urban Development Ministry,8221; the official said. 8220;Nor will they have to follow strict regulations on land-use.

8220;For instance, if DMRC has been given land for a station but finds the area suitable for another purpose, they can go ahead. Or if they have surplus land they can use it in any fashion they deem fit.8221;

The rules have now made it possible for DMRC to develop property on top of the Metro stations, officials said.

An official in the Urban Development Ministry said this model of relaxed land norms for metro railway system would now be implemented across the country. 8220;We will, of course, monitor how the Delhi model unfolds and then recommend it to other states developing Metro rail system,8221; the official added.

With restrictions from the Urban Development ministry out of the way, the only clearance that DMRC now needs is clearance for building from local agencies such as the MCD, NDMC and DDA among others. Before this relaxation, Delhi Metro was allowed to develop 500 meters of land commercially on either side of its stations.

8220;This land, however, cannot be auctioned since it is on lease,8221; the Urban Development ministry official said. 8220;So any commercial activity will have to take place within a lease period and then given back to the Metro.8221;

Haryana station projects get panel8217;s okay
The Empowered Committee on Friday also cleared a proposal of the Haryana government to increase its development around three stations of its elevated stretch on the Delhi-Gurgaon route. The route ends at Sushant Lok in Gurgaon. The committee has decided to include service roads along the stations to help commuters. This would be developed at an additional cost of Rs 5 crore: Haryana government will provide Rs 4 crore of this, and the Centre will pitch in with the rest Rs 1 crore.