

KOCHI: The Kochi Metro has garnered global attention and it’s a matter of pride for the entire Kerala that the Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) is entrusted with the study to start water metro in various centres across the country, Industries Minister P Rajeev said on Monday.
He was inaugurating the state-of-the-art fuel station at Kalamassery, a joint project of KMRL and BPCL. He urged KMRL to examine whether the green spaces along the medians between metro stations can be maintained with the help of various other agencies, despite the metro facing financial crunch.
Hibi Eden MP said that no metro system in the country is profitable and that the metro authorities here are leaving no stone unturned to generate revenue.
“The fuel station venture is the latest example of that. It will give a big boost to the efforts to increase non-fare revenue. The KMRL will get Rs 40 lakh lease amount besides a profit share that corresponds with the sales.”
“Now the 24-hour fuel station caters to petrol, diesel and electric vehicles. We’re in talks over making available CNG fuel as well,” Loknath Behara, KMRL managing director, said.