Mumbai Metro 3: Final Funding Released For The Underground Corridor, Project Nears 98 Per Cent Completion

The completion of Mumbai's first underground metro rail route drew nearer as the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) disbursed the fifth and final instalment of official development assistance (ODA), totalling Rs 4,474 crore, to the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRCL).

Trials for the metro line 3 corridor were recently completed by the Research, Design and Standards Organisation, a division of Indian Railways.

Originally estimated at slightly over Rs 23,000 crore, the project's revised cost was approved in February by the Centre at Rs 37,276 crore, with JICA committing 57.09 per cent of the funds, totalling Rs 21,280 crore.

It has been nearly 11 years since the first instalment of the loan was disbursed to MMRCL in September 2013.

Recent reports indicate that the Maharashtra state government has also allocated Rs 1,163 crore to expedite the remaining phases of construction for the underground metro corridor.

This 33.5-kilometre (km) underground metro route will connect North and South Mumbai along the Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ corridor, linking key financial hubs such as Nariman Point, Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), Worli, Lower Parel, and Goregaon.

Nearly 98 per cent of the work on the corridor has been finished.

The first segment between Aarey and BKC is expected to open to the public in September. The second phase, linking BKC to Colaba, is expected to be operational by December 2024.