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    Germany’s Deutsche Bahn wins bid to operate and maintain Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut rapid rail

    Synopsis

    This is the first time that comprehensive operation and maintenance (O&M) activities are being handed over to a private concessionaire. Traditionally, the public transport services such as the railways are developed and maintained by government entities.

    The contract has been awarded to Deutsche Bahn Engineering and Consultancy India Pvt Ltd (DB India), which is a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG, the National Railway Company of Germany.Agencies
    The contract has been awarded to Deutsche Bahn Engineering and Consultancy India Pvt Ltd (DB India), which is a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG, the National Railway Company of Germany.
    Germany’s Deutsche Bahn will operate and maintain the entire Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut rapid rail transit corridor for 12 years. According to officials from the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC), the winning bid value is estimated at Rs 1500 crores for the contract period.

    This is the first time that comprehensive operation and maintenance (O&M) activities are being handed over to a private concessionaire. Traditionally, the public transport services such as the railways are developed and maintained by government entities.

    “The handing over of O&M activities to a private concessionaire is expected to keep recurring costs under check,” an NCRTC official told ET.

    The contract has been awarded to Deutsche Bahn Engineering and Consultancy India Pvt Ltd (DB India), which is a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG, the National Railway Company of Germany.

    “The rail-based transit systems in India are run by public entities, at times by outsourcing certain activities to private contractors. There has been limited participation by the private sector in this sector and till now the scope has generally been limited to the provision of facility management and ancillary services,” an NCRTC statement said.

    According to NCRTC, the contract awarded to DB India is as per the Metro Rail Policy-2017 issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs which advocates the need for private sector participation in regional rail and metro rail projects.

    “By adopting the long-term private participation model entailing comprehensive outsourcing of O&M activities, NCRTC has initiated steps to fulfil this objective of the Metro Rail Policy-2017,” NCRTC said.

    Commenting on the development, Vinay Kumar Singh, Managing Director at NCRTC said, “RRTS is a capital-intensive project, where long-term sustainability is paramount without compromising the safety and comfort of commuters.”

    According to NCRTC, it is expected that apart from efficient delivery of services, the private sector involvement will lead to operational efficiencies and optimum utilisation of resources. This model encourages optimised performance through a system of incentives and penalties.

    The rapid rail project is part of the ‘Comprehensive Action Plan’ (CAP) for Air Pollution Control in Delhi & NCR’ and is in line with the recommendation of the ‘High Powered Committee on Decongesting Traffic in Delhi’.


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