THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Metroman E Sreedharan will break his silence on why he withdrew from Rs 7,446-crore Light Metro project in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode, on Thursday. In an email response to Express, the Principal Advisor to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said he will meet the press in Kochi on March 8 and explain the reasons. Multiple sources working closely with him said Sreedharan had waited for a response from the government on awarding of contracts to DMRC till February 15 before making the decision.
“He announced to his staff the offices will be closed down by March 15. The process of winding up DMRC offices in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode began from February 28. The government is yet to respond to his decision. Perhaps, they do not have an answer for not awarding the contract even though it was approved by the Cabinet,” said a source.
The source said taking up challenging work and executing it despite resistance from political and bureaucratic classes were nothing new for Sreedharan.
“The 85-year old Padma Vibhushan awardee is an advisor to many metro projects. He faced challenges from politicians at the time of the construction of Konkan railways, Delhi Metro and others. What he cannot stand is the go-slow attitude of the bureaucracy,” said the source. Last year, Sreedharan quit as advisor to the Andhra Pradesh government on the Metro rail projects after it did not progress as per the plans.
The Metro project in Thiruvananthapuram has been suffering even when the first detailed project report was submitted in October, 2014. The cost escalation due to the delay has reached almost `720 crore. In the meantime, DMRC has been able to commission the first phase of the Lucknow Metro project.
BJP bats for Sreedharan
BJP national executive committee member V Muraleedharan alleged the state government wanted to sideline Sreedharan. “The government wanted to bring companies of their choice into the project. The plot is now set for corruption,” he alleged.
He demanded the government give the project’s charge to Sreedharan else . “BJP will start protests if the government sidelines Sreedharan and plans to indulge in corruption in the project,” he said.