GURUGRAM: The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Limited is going international. Minister for Housing, Urban Affairs, and Energy Manohar Lal Khattar announced on Friday that the Union government will soon establish the Delhi Metro International Limited (DMIL), which will explore global alliances and work towards expanding India’s metro network to other countries.
Khattar was speaking at the three-day 18th Urban Mobility India Conference and Exhibition in Gurugram, through the government expects to generate policy recommendations urban development and improve public services.
He said that, alongside, the government proposes to develop a mass rapid transit system in partnership with the DMRC to strengthen metro interconnectivity and ensure safe and reliable transportation facilities. He claimed that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India was advancing toward self-reliance. “Integrating transport networks will help India become a developed nation by 2047, in line with the Make in India initiative,” he said. He noted that India ranks third globally in metro coverage and is poised to surpass the US within the next three years. China is the global leader in metro coverage.
Khattar also announced the creation of a Delhi Metro Rail Academy and a Centre of Excellence, which will guide metro services through innovative approaches. Khattar said that he would discuss the issue of infrastructural improvement in Gurugram with Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini.
The agenda that Khattar proposed to cover would include creating Delhi-style world-class convention centres in Gurugram. Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Tokhan Sahu said India was currently undergoing a transformative era of infrastructure development, where urban transport had evolved beyond being merely a means of mobility and, instead, had become a driving force for economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social equity.
Speaking on this occasion, Haryana Additional Chief Secretary Raja Shekhar Vundru said that the state was setting an exemplary benchmark in the field of urban mobility, serving as a model for other states to follow. Highlighting the importance of the conference,
Vundru said that it provides a powerful platform for collaboration among the government, industry, academia, and citizens. “It is a space where we can come together to share new ideas, innovations, and creative solutions,” he said.
During the event, Khattar also released three publications: Guidelines for Issuing Municipal Green Bonds in India, Edition 5 of The Green Urban Mobility Partnership newsletter, and Guidance Document on Building Resilient E-Bus Ecosystems.