JNNURM-II to be thrice in size than earlier avatar

July 29, 2013

Dipak Kumar Dash, TNN Jun 16, 2013

NEW DELHI: The second phase of the UPA’s flagship programme for urban infrastructure development, JNNURM, would be thrice the size of the last phase. The proposed JNNURM-II, which would be for 10 years including the current fiscal, would be pegged at Rs 1.5 lakh crore, sources in the urban development ministry said.

In a move that would may silence the chief ministers, who have been complaining of discrimination by the Centre in allocation of funds to non-UPA-ruled states, the programme’s second phase would have a greater say for the state governments in both planning and selection of projects. They would have more freedom in choosing cities, cluster of cities and urban growth centres to avail the Central assistance. Sources added that the governments would also submit their comprehensive plan of urbanization in the state.

For the current financial year, Rs 15,000 crore budgetary allocations have been made as a stop-gap arrangement to ensure that the ongoing projects don’t stop midway. JNNURM-II is likely to be launched after the next parliamentary election results are out.

“But the government wants to clear the process so that the programme continues no matter what the result would be. The criteria of selection and fund allocation are yet to be finalized,” said a ministry official. There are reports that performance of states in the first phase of JNNURM could be one of the qualifying norms for selection.

In addition, JNNURM-II’s ambit would be extended to smaller cities and towns. Last year UD minister Kamal Nath had also stated this in Parliament. “Nobody has given attention to town and cities with population of 10,000 to 50,000,” he said replying to the debate on demand for grants for 2012-13.

In the first phase of the mission, the cities with a population of one million or more were included, he said, adding, in the second, the government is planning to include cities with a population five lakh and above.

Source – http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under JNNURM

Metro Acquired “WiTrac” vehicle actuated wireless traffic control system from Ministry of Communication

July 26, 2013

Metro Acquired “WiTrac” vehicle actuated wireless traffic control system from Ministry of Communication:-

The traffic congestion has become a major issue in the current traffic scenario. The travel time and congestion on signal could not be minimized by the traditional solutions since these are heuristic data based solution and can’t provide optimal solution in the fluctuating traffic scenario.

There are number of models used globally to optimize the signals but they do not meet the Indian traffic scenario due to high heterogeneity of traffic and poor lane selection by the commuters in India.

To overcome this limitation M/s Metro Infrasys Pvt. Ltd. acquired WiTrac technology featured by new model CoSiCoSt (Composite Signal Control Strategy) developed by C-DAC. This model suits the Indian traffic scenario most effectively among all the existing models of ATCS.

It is an advance technology which promises to make the traffic smooth in the cities. It is a traffic responsive system access and manipulates the real time data to optimize the traffic signal.

The solution provided by Metro has some unique features. The system has one master unit on each intersection which monitor the all other slave units and also communicate with the central control room for optimize the signal time.

System is an eco-friendly system which used solar energy as an power source for the equipments.
The system communicates via wireless communication which reduces the civil work and obstruction on the intersection.
Enabled with remote administration, task like force flashed, junction off and download of plan can performed remotely.
Self diagnosis ability in case of power up and run time.
For technical perspective error log will be sent to the control room as networked to study the cause of failure.

The System has been implemented in Pune and Jaipur on trial basis and is performing satisfactorily.

System does not impact greatly on the traffic scenario. The system increases the average travel speed by 2% to 12% and reduces the average delay time by 11% to 30% only. But economically system saved 5.6 Crores in year 2006 by implementing the 6 project corridors.

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Default

NHAI – Toll Tax taken from active Defence Personnel

July 22, 2013

Sir,
1. I am an active soldier in Indian Armed Force. i was on 13 jun 13 my way from Jhunjhunu to loharu on jaipur loharu road was in own car , at ojjoto (near chirwa) Tollway : on production of my service identity card i was forced to pay the toll tax, where as i showed them that in their exemption list it is mentioned that for defence personnel on production of the same are exempted for paying toll, rather they humiliated me and force me to pay the toll and thay tell me yhat ”this is bot road no toll exempted on bot road and thay written behind the slip ”no toll exemption for defence person .

3. I humbly request you to take an appropriate action against it so that no other soldiers get humiliated in future my mobile no is 09581054131

sanjeev kumar

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Uncategorized

Infrastructure Outlook, 9-11th Sept. 2013, Kuala Lumpur

July 18, 2013

Bricsa Consulting proudly presents the Infrastructure Outlook 2013 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia following our successful Infrastructure Outlook 2013 Mumbai edition this year in July. The conference will take place during Monday 09th September to Wednesday 11th September.

The Mumbai conference experienced an astounding delegation and sponsorship participation during a difficult economic period that the Infrastructure Sector going through. More than 100 delegates were in attendance – half of them came from Developers, Rail operators and the government sector.

IL & FS Transportation Network Ltd., King Stubb & Kasiva (KSK), Patentes Talgo, S.A. and Ernst & Young also played a pivotal role in hosting the conference as Leading Partners.

As Malaysian government continue to invest in their transport infrastructure, this upcoming conference will remains the definitive event for those seeking to learn about the latest rail and road sector developments, challenges and solutions, and new business opportunities in the South East Asian region.

The conference programme will explore key developments and opportunities including:

-Update on the latest rail & road projects across South East Asia

-The latest market developments in Malaysia

-Planning sustainable MRTs and key regional projects

-Benchmarking best practice for the transport infrastructure industry

-An analysis of the PPP business case and transport infrastructure financing strategies

The latest high-speed project opportunities in Malaysia

Day Three: An exclusive one day workshop on Project Management – Integrated Transport and Land Use Projects

For more information please visit http://www.infraoutlook.com/index.html/events/kuala_lumpur/

For further details please contact:

Ms. Anwesha Dutta

Tel: +91 22 67332333

Fax: +91 22 67105381

Email: [email protected]

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Expo & Events

Metro ready with phase 4 report, work to begin soon

July 15, 2013

Subhendu Ray , Hindustan Times New Delhi,

The construction of Metro corridors under the proposed phase 4 may start much before the ongoing phase 3 is completed.

Taking steps in this direction, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is almost on the verge of completing the detailed project report (DPR) for the proposed phase 4 corridors (94.24km).

“By August DPR for all the corridors proposed in phase 4 will be ready and submitted to the state government for requisite approvals. After that we will be able to start civil work under phase 4, anytime the government wants us to,” said SD Sharma, director, business development, DMRC.

Delhi Metro has already prepared and submitted the DPR for the Maujpur-Mukundpur corridor to the Delhi government.

It is also almost ready with the DPR for Janakpuri West-RK Ashram corridor and would submit it to the government within a week, said Sharma.

By the end of this month, DMRC will submit DPRs for three other corridors— Tughlakabad-Aerocity, Lajpat Nagar-Saket G Block and Inderlok-Indraprastha —and the DPR for Rithala-Narela via Bawana by August, said DMRC officials.

Before finalising, the DPRs would have to be approved first by the Delhi government and then by the Centre.

“We may have to start construction work for some corridors under phase 4 much before the completion of phase 3 in 2016. We have expedited the process of preparing DPR for phase 4 as the urban development minister wanted early execution of the project,” Sharma said.

Phase 4 is scheduled to be completed by 2021.

According to officials, Delhi Metro has made certain changes in the initial project layout following suggestions given by the Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES), an engineering consultancy company, which last year had conducted a traffic survey and found that some changes in the plan would benefit more people.

Source-http://www.hindustantimes.com

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Uncategorized

DMRC begins preparations to operate airport express line

July 15, 2013

PTI New Delhi, June 29, 2013

A day after Reliance Infra refused to operate the Delhi Airport Metro line beyond June 30, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation on Saturday said it has started all the necessary arrangements required to take over operations of the 22.7 km long express link.

“DMRC has started all necessary arrangements required for taking over the operations of the airport express link, if any such requirement arises, in the wake of a recent letter by the concessionaire communicating that they (Reliance Infra) will not be able to run the services after the business hours of June 30,” a DMRC spokesperson said.

Reliance Infra owned Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited (DAMEPL) had written a letter on June 27 expressing its inability to continue operations from the night of June 30.

Yesterday, in a board meeting the DMRC had rejected the notice given by Reliance Infra, and termed it as a “violation” of the Concessionaire Agreement and the ongoing Arbitration proceedings.

An Operations and Maintenance team of 100 officials has been created under DMRC’s director, operations, Sharat Sharma to handle the operations of the airport line, the spokesperson said.

DMRC’s managing director Mangu Singh has also formed a core committee of seven senior officials to handle extreme emergency situations.

Officers and staff will be deputed for all the strategic departments such as Operations, Traction, Electrical and Maintenance, Civil, Signalling and Communications, Security, Rolling Stock and Finance, he said.

An Operations Control Manager (OCM) will also be appointed with a dedicated team to take over the control of all the important Operations Control Centre (OCC) of the line, from where the Express link operations are monitored.

However, the staff currently employed by the concessionaire in station management and train operations will continue to carry on with their responsibilities under the DMRC’s supervision.

“Senior DMRC officials today had a meeting with the officials of the concessionaire, Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited for the smooth transition of the services. Both the organisations are working together to ensure the continuation of the smooth functioning of the line,” the DMRC spokesperson said.

Source-http://www.hindustantimes.com

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Metro Rail

Project Management Real Estate Conference, 17-18 October, Mumbai

July 11, 2013

With the changing trend of construction industry, project managers are now looking for new technology and products which will help them overcome challenges around contract management, quality management, risk management, in-time delivery and many more.

UBM India has organised a 2 day meet for project managers across construction and real estate industry to discuss and achieve practical solutions and build on fast track project management.

Get together with experts who have handled complex projects from leading companies like Larsen & Toubro, DLF, Shapoorji Pallonji, Tata Projects, Gammon India, Hindustan Construction Company, Sobha Developers, Hiranandani Group, Lodha Group, K Raheja and many more.

What’s new: One day seminar on “Shuttering” which will help you achieve your project with fastest speed and within controlled costs.

Who should attend?

VP’s, Director, Group Head Projects
Project Managers
Quality Assurance
Services
Contracts & Procurements
Reinforcement in-charge
Shuttering in-charge

Please visit http://bit.ly/16tHLmB

For more details please contact:

Shwetha Prabhu

T: +91-22-61727001

E:[email protected].

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Default, Expo & Events

Post event Publication for National Roads & Highways Summit, 28th June, PHD House, New Delhi

July 10, 2013

28^th June, 2013 at 10:00 a.m., PHD House, New Delhi

The Roads, Ports & Other Infrastructure Committee of PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry organized the ‘National Roads & Highways Summit- Opportunities, Issues & Solutions’ on the 28^th of June, 2013 at PHD House, New Delhi. The Summit was attended by more than 150 distinguished delegates comprising of senior government officials from Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, National Highways Authority of India, Border Roads Organization; senior officials from Government aided organizations such as Central Road Research institute; senior officials from Embassies; senior officials from private infrastructure companies specializing in Roads & Highways such as Reliance Infrastructure, Gayatri Projects Limited, GMR, Srei Infrastructure Finance; consultants and professionals working in the roads sector; representatives from Industry; Media and many more.

The Chief Guest at the Summit was Mr. Gajendra Haldea, Advisor Infrastructure, Planning Commission, Govt of India.

A Research Report titled ‘A View Point of PHD Chamber and Infraline on Roads & Highways in India’ published by Infraline Energy, the Research Partner for the Summit was also released by the Chief Guest on the occasion.

Mr. Gajendra Haldea in his Keynote Address stated that introduction of PPP required restructuring of institutions but unfortunately the institutional framework has not been created even within NHAI. He further apprised the delegates that the Planning Commission is formulating a ‘Dispute Settlement Bill’ which will resolve disputes in road projects to a great extent.

Mr. Anil Swarup, IAS, Additional Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat in his Special Address apprised the delegates that the Cabinet Secretariat has created a single Web portal for all project developers through which they can communicate their problems with regard to a particular Ministry.

Mr. Suman Jyoti Khaitan, President, PHD Chamber .in his Welcome Address emphasized the need to enhance the capacity as well as the quality of roads in the country. He urged the authorities to address the constraints in this sector on a priority basis.

Mr. Ashish Wig, Chairman, Roads, Ports & Other Infrastructure Committee, PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry in his presentation of the ‘Industry Perspective’ urged the policymakers to address the bottlenecks faced by the concessionaires with regard to highway projects.

The Summit had two Technical Sessions on ‘Financial & Contractual Issues in Roads & Highways’ and ‘Global Advances in Technology & Material’ where distinguished speakers from NHAI, Khaitan & Partners, SBI Capital Markets, CRRI as well as from Private Industry gave valuable suggestions for the roads and highways sector. The Summit also had two Panel discussions on ‘Environmental Clearances in Road/Highway Projects’ and ‘CEO’s & CFO’s Perspective on Project Execution challenges and Proposed Highway Regulator’s role’ which was addressed by CEO’s of Reliance Infrastructure, GMR, Gayatri Projects, Srei Infrastructure and Metro Infrasys. . Almost all the speakers and delegates felt the need for the regulator in the Roads and Highway Sector with full powers and accountability.

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under Default

6th Annual Bridges MiddleEast, 11-13th November 2013,The Ritz Carlton, Doha

July 1, 2013

3-day strategic forum focused on incorporating asset management strategies into the life-span of bridges and tunnels to deliver world-class infrastructure networks

The 6th Annual Bridges Middle East Co-located with Tunnels Middle East is the region’s leading event dedicated to designing, planning, delivering and maintaining world-class bridges and tunnels, taking place this year from 11-13 November 2013 in Doha, Qatar. This international forum and exhibition will be dedicated toshowcasing state-of-the-art technology and methods for bridge and tunnel design, construction and maintenance. The summit offers a platform for all stakeholders within the bridge and tunnel project value chain, from planning and design, to construction and procurement, to maintenance and asset management, to discuss and and gain in-depth information about international best-practice methods for maximising the life-span of structures.

Topics to be discussed include:

Delivering structures that align with Qatar’s National 2030 vision of developing a world-class infrastructure network
Presenting updates on key bridge projects across the region
Examining the focus on the future of Qatar by creating structures that are environmentally sensitive
Minimising disruption for the public when constructing bridges and flyovers
Building durable and sustainable structures which withstand Middle East conditions and optimise life cycle cost
Meeting client expectations in relation to programme, budget, quality, durability and attractive structures
Reviewing the required underground works for Qatar as it moves closer to the 2030 vision
Addressing the durability of tunnels through in-depth analysis and accurate planning at the design phase

Benefits of attending:

Network with industry experts from across the supply chain including government organisations, developers, architects, consultants, contractors, universities, institutes and solution providers to increase your knowledge of local and international projects
Help your clients deliver bridge and tunnel projects which align with Qatar National Vision 2030
Employ design and construction methods that help you to reduce costs whilst maintaining quality
Adopt bridge and tunnel asset management strategies to optimize the life-span and minimise maintenance costs

Who you will meet at the 6th Annual Bridges Middle East, co-located with Tunnels Middle East:

You will have the opportunity to meet and hear from industry experts, including: