Union Budget 2022-23: Today, Finance Minister presented the General Budget in the parliament for this fiscal. In recent years, the Finance Ministry had provided a Budget for all Metro Projects in the country instead of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) alone. Accordingly, in the Union Budget of the financial year 2022-23, the allocation has been made for all Metro projects in India. For all Metro Projects in the country, the Minister of Finance of India Nirmala Sitharaman has allocated Equity Investment of Rs 3,702 crore, Subordinate Debt of Rs 1,272 crore, Pass Through Assistance of Rs 14,156 crore and the Total Budget of the financial year 2022-23 is Rs 19,130 crore.
In her Budget Speech of 2022-23, the Finance Minister said that innovative ways will be encouraged for financing as well as faster implementation for building metro systems of appropriate type at scale. Also, the FM mentioned that multimodal connectivity between mass urban transport and railway stations in the country will be facilitated on priority. Also, the design of metro systems in India, including civil structures, will be re-oriented as well as standardized for Indian conditions and requirements, Sitharaman stated.
Meanwhile, the Finance Minister in her Budget Speech 2022-23 also said as a preferred alternative to conventional roads in difficult hilly areas, National Ropeways Development Programme, which is ecologically sustainable, will be taken up on public – private partnership (PPP) mode. The aim of this move is to enhance the convenience and improve connectivity for commuters, apart from giving tourism a boost, according to the FM. The National Ropeways Development Programme may cover congested urban areas as well, where conventional mass transit system is not feasible, the minister stated. Contracts for as many as eight ropeway projects for a length of 60 km will be awarded in the financial year 2022-23, she said.
