News Brief
Vizag Metro Phase-1 Civil Works Set For October 2025 Start As AIIB Mulls 60 Per Cent Funding For The Project
A view of Visakhapatnam. (Image: Sharan Setty)
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has shown interest in funding 60 per cent of the Vizag Metro Rail (VMR) project, sending a two-member delegation to Visakhapatnam to assess Phase-1 of the proposed network, according to The Hindu.
The remaining 40 per cent of funding will be equally shared by the State and Central governments.
The AIIB team, led by Senior Investment Officer Pascal Roussel, spent two days touring the 43 proposed stations on the 46.23 km Phase-1 route, accompanied by NP Ramakrishna Reddy, Managing Director of the Andhra Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (APMRC).
“We want to begin civil works by October, 2025 and are expediting all aspects of the project,” Reddy was quoted as saying by The Hindu.
“The AIIB team visited the city as part of the process of sanctioning a loan (60 per cent of the total project cost). We will prioritise Phase-1 first and will follow with Phase-2 after the international airport at Bhogapuram becomes operational," Reddy added.
Phase-1 includes a 20 km double-decker section and a 26 km metro rail stretch.
“No other double-decker system of this length exists in India,” Reddy noted.
This structure will accommodate a flyover on the first level for road traffic and metro rail on the second, both supported by the same pier.
The Rs 2,000 crore additional cost of the double-decker design comes on top of the Rs 11,498 crore total investment for Phase-1.
An estimated 99.75 acres of land will be acquired, costing Rs 882 crore, exclusive of the project cost.
The AIIB has previously funded metro projects in Chennai, Kochi (Phase-2), and Mumbai (Line 5).
