SRI NAGAR: The Governor administration in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday appointed “Metro Man” Elattuvalapil Sreedharan as Principal Advisor for two Mass Rapid Transit Corporations (MRTCs) in the state.“The appointment of Dr Sreedharan as Principal Advisor to the two Corporations will give the impetus to efforts of the State Government,” an official spokesman said.
Sreedharan, a Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan awardee, is credited for changing the face of public transport in India with his leadership in building the Konkan Railway and the Delhi Metro. He was also appointed by the former UN Secretary General Ban-Ki-Moon to serve on the United Nations High Level Advisory Group on Sustainable Transport (HLAG-ST) for three years in 2015 and has vast experience in implementing of mass rapid transit systems.
The J&K government recently approved two Mass Rapid Transit Corporations in the state — Jammu Mass Rapid Transit Corporation and Srinagar Mass Rapid Transit Corporation.
These corporations have been mandated to address issues of urban mobility in a holistic manner by providing safe, affordable, reliable and sustainable access for the city inhabitants to jobs, education, recreation etc.
The corporations would undertake to provide for running taxicabs, lorries, buses, cars, trucks, station wagons, motors, railways, rail motors, vessels, boats and all other vehicles of whatsoever kind propelled by electricity, gas, gasoline, compressed air, steam, manual power, mechanized power, oil, crude oil, atomic or other energy or whatsoever other means from one place to another as intercity or intra-city services or BRT feeder bus services for the purpose of carrying, conveying and transporting passengers, goods, merchandise, animals or other things for efficient running of the mass transit system and providing last mile connectivity.
The aim behind setting up the corporations is to provide a robust and reliable transportation system to the commuters in the twin cities, which are grappling with traffic congestion.Administative secretaries of several departments will be on the board of these bodies.
Changing the face of mass transit
Elattuvalapil Sreedharan is credited with changing the face of public transport in India with his leadership in building the Konkan Railway and the Delhi Metro. He was also appointed by the former UN Secretary General Ban-Ki-Moon to serve on the United Nations High Level Advisory Group on Sustainable Transport (HLAG-ST) for three years in 2015 and has vast experience in implementing of mass rapid transit systems
