KOCHI: The Kochi Water Metro project will start its commercial operations during the 2019 Vishu season, Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) managing director A P M Mohammed Hanish said on Tuesday.
The `746-crore project aims to launch modernised boats and renovation of boat jetties to strengthen the water transport network of greater Kochi."The tenders for manufacturing boats will be rolled out by December 31. We are hopeful of launching commercial operations on April 14, 2019," Hanish told reporters after holding discussions with representatives of KFW, the German Development Bank which is providing external borrowings for the project.
The German delegation, which was in Kochi for a day, was led by Lisbeth Müller-Hofstede. Christoph Kessler, Country Director, KfW, and Swati Khanna, Sector Specialist from KfW, was also part of the delegation. They reviewed the water metro project and carried out site visits. The team also expressed satisfaction with the progress of the project.
In the meeting, KFW delegates said they were willing to explore the possibilities of extending support to the Smart City Mission projects. A delegation from German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) comprising Sarah Habersack, programme manager, Sustainable Urban Transport System for Smart Cities, Monika Bahl, Thomas Kauter-Eby and Susanne Ziegler also took part in the discussions along with KfW.
GIZ is working in the areas of urban transport and smart cities in selected cities in India. They also have a long legacy of supporting Kochi city in the area of sanitation. GIZ is also part of the German-French collaboration 'Mobilise the City' and is supporting AFD in Kochi.