The Metro Rail Policy is unveiled in 2017 and it contains some very clear directives for undertaking Metro rail projects in various urban centres. It opens a big window for private investments in metro operations by making PPP component mandatory for availing central assistance on metro projects.
Rationale of the Policy -
At present, 10 Indian cities have functional metro rail networks. These cities are Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Kochi and Lucknow. The first metro service in India started in Kolkata in 1984. More than 664 km of metro rail projects in 15 cities are presently under various stages of implementation, while more than 515 km of metro line are already operational in India.