By Express News Service

A sustainable approach right from the planning stage has made Nagpur Metro the country’s ‘greenest metro’, Brajesh Dixit, Managing Director of Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, told Abhjit Mulye in an interview. Excerpts:

What is meant by the greenest metro? What are the sustainable solutions used in developing this metro?

Sixty-five per cent of the energy requirement of Nagpur Metro is met from solar panels on the roofs of the metro rail, stations, depot boundary walls, depot shed etc. This was done from the inception stage. In the first phase, 14 MW solar power capacity has been installed. The energy generated is added to the national grid and the power required is drawn from local sources. Also, procurement of materials and the project management was done on the 5D BIM (Five Dimensional Building Information Modelling) platform.

Is it a multi-layered metro?

The ongoing work gives such an impression as we have multiple usages sharing the same right of way for this project. That means roads, flyovers, highways and the metro are coming up in the same vertical space. It would be three and four-layer transport system.

Why has Maha Metro developed a selfie point near Zero Mile at Nagpur?

It is not just about brand building, but showcasing the brand of the city where it is coming up, and adding value to the city. We are planning world-class stations with a commercial development angle involved in it. There are places of historical importance along the metro route, so each station has a unique theme based on local history and culture.

Started in 2015, the Nagpur Metro project is the fastest to be completed. How did it happen?

Nagpur Metro held trial runs within just 27 months, and in just under four years services started. The state government has approved the detailed project report of the second phase.