The stunning Jaipur Metro comes to life

Heralding a great transformation in the state’s transport network, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday flagged off the trial run of the Jaipur Metro.

The ambitious project completed in record time is the first metro rail systems in a tier-II city. It took Delhi Metro five years to conduct its first trial.

Construction on the grand project, with an estimated cost of over Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 100 billion), began on November 14, 2010.

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Jaipur’s infrastructure gets a further boost with the completion of the first trial run across 4 kms of the 9.2 km stretch between Mansrovar and Chandpole.

While the first phase cost around Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion), the remaining fund will be used for building the underground subway in the heritage city, which will require the reconstruction of the historical sites Badi and Choti Chaupar once the project is completed.

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“We have been the fastest to conduct the trial run of a Metro rail in the country”, NC Goyal, managing director of Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation said.

The chief minister in his address maintained that they had taken enough measures to maintain the safety of project.

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The Jaipur Metro project is DMRC's first Metro construction project outside the National Capital Region (NCR).

However, commercial operation of the metro rail will begin only in December and till then several trials will be conducted.

Once the metro becomes operational in December, Jaipur would be the fifth city after Kolkata, Delhi, Banglore and Mumbai (metro trial has been conducted) to have a metro service.

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According to officials, besides completing in record time, it is for the first time in country that a sharp curve of 120 metre radius has been given to the railway track.

Keeping in sync with the heritage of the Walled city, the stations in that area will be having a heritage look. 

In the first phase, there will be eleven stations, while the train will have only four coaches. Later, depending on the commuters, two more coaches will be added.

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The Jaipur Metro turned out to be a new hotspot for the city with hundreds of people visiting the place within minutes of Gehlot flagging off the metro. 

Youngsters were seen …

JMRC officals had taken a unique initiative of involving locals, seeking their suggestions on fares and naming the stations.

Besides locals, tourists will also benefit from the metro while visiting heritage sites of ‘Pink City’.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will lay foundation stone of Phase II of the Jaipur Metro on Saturday.