NCRTC Joins Hands With DB India For Operation And Maintenance Of The Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS Corridor

NCRTC has joined hands with Deutsche Bahn Engineering and Consultancy India (DB India) for the operation and maintenance of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor.

How it will help: It will pave the path for the transfer of knowledge, best international practices, and managerial services that are available around the globe to the Indian metro and rail O&M industry.

• The expertise and experience of O&M partner combined with advanced technology adopted by NCRTC will bring in the predictability of long-term costs, managerial efficiencies and entrepreneurial spirit of the private sector in providing quality services to the commuters.

• It will provide commuters world-class customer experience and help boost domestic capacities in the sector, having a multiplier effect.

The contract: The agreement between NCRTC and DB India was signed for a period of 12 years.

• To arrive at the most optimum contracting model, NCRTC undertook extensive discussions with stakeholders to identify the most efficient and effective mechanism for handling O&M of RRTS

• The aim was to ensure optimum utilisation of assets, reduce interfacing risks and take a comprehensive long-term view of the entire spectrum of O&M aspects.

• An optimum risk matrix approach has been adopted, and risks allocated to the party best suited to handle.

Role of the private sector: The Metro Rail Policy 2017 formulated by the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry 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 fulfill this objective.

• It is expected that apart from efficient delivery of services, the private sector involvement will lead to operational efficiencies and optimum utilisation of assets/resources.

Another NCRTC initiative: It has also adopted the first-of-its-kind model for integrated procurement cum long-term (15 years) comprehensive maintenance of rolling stock through private participation to capture lifecycle costing.

• This was adopted to tap the use of the most suitable technologies and durable components and latest state-of-the-art technologies and practices at optimum costs.

• The comprehensive O&M contract and the aforesaid procurement cum long-term maintenance contract are now being proposed to be adopted by Indian Railways and other metro companies.

Why RRTS: The implementation of RRTS is part of the ‘Comprehensive Action Plan (CAP) for Air Pollution Control in Delhi & NCR’ and the recommendation of the ‘High Powered Committee on Decongesting Traffic in Delhi’.

• Once operational, a shift of traffic from private modes to a rapid rail system and multimodal integration and seamless connectivity will reduce the energy use by the transport sector in NCR. It will promote ease of living as well as ease of doing business within the NCR.

• It is envisaged that the savings achieved with efficient operations would be recurring in nature and would have a direct impact on the long-term sustainability of RRTS.