Kozhikode monorail work from January

Two-stage tender process to be done by general consultant DMRC

Minister for Industries and IT P.K. Kunhalikutty inaugurated the project office of Kerala Monorail Corporation Ltd. (KMCL) at Civil Station here on Saturday. KMCL, chaired by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, is the special purpose vehicle (SPV) set up to execute the Rs.5,581-crore monorail project in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode.

Minister for Public Works and KMCL Vice Chairman V.K. Ebrahim Kunju told reporters at the function that global tenders had been floated for the project in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode. The tenders would be finalised by December. The first phase construction for Kozhikode would begin in January 2014 and completed in 3 years, he added.

The corporation had given the green signal for floating tenders during the last week of June.

The tenders would be floated treating the two projects as one. A combined distance of 36.4 km would be covered during the first phase. The two-stage tender process was being taken up by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the general consultant for the projects.

The process included request for qualification (RFQ) and request for proposal (RFP). The tenders were being floated to select companies to design the monorail project and set it up in the two cities, operate and maintain it five years, and to mobilise funds.

Apart from the construction work on the monorail, those selected would have to supply rolling stock, build signal and telecommunication facility, and construct stations and depots.

The first phase of the monorail in Kozhikode would cover 14.2 km from the Government Medical College to Meenchantha, with 15 stations.

Much land acquisition was not needed in the first phase. The corporation would have to deal with strong protests, from local people and merchants, during the second phase of the project, Mr. Kunju said.

The second phase of the project would be from Meenchantha to Ramanattukara. Minister for Social Welfare M.K. Muneer and M.K. Raghavan, MP, were present at the function.