Kerala’s proposed high-speed rail project has hit a review stage after a government-appointed expert panel raised concerns over the completeness and feasibility of the proposal prepared by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).
Chief Minister V D Satheesan said on Wednesday that the committee had concluded that the project should not move forward in its present form, as several critical aspects were missing from the proposal. The DMRC plan was prepared under the guidance of Metro Man E Sreedharan.
According to Satheesan, the panel found that the proposal lacked a detailed social and environmental impact assessment, a strong economic model, logistics planning and comprehensive viability studies. The committee has recommended that no steps should be taken towards land demarcation or acquisition until these issues are addressed.
The Chief Minister said the government needs to conduct detailed studies on various aspects of the project before preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR). He added that land acquisition or related activities would not begin before establishing the project’s feasibility.
One of the major concerns highlighted by the panel was the absence of a logistics component. Satheesan said the current proposal mainly focuses on passenger transportation but does not explain how freight movement or goods transportation would be handled.
“Without a logistics component, repayment of loans taken for the project could become a challenge,” he said, adding that a detailed study on freight movement is necessary.
The committee also pointed out gaps related to land availability, expected passenger numbers and integration with other transport systems, including metro networks and inland waterways. According to the Chief Minister, these factors are essential for determining whether the project can be financially and operationally sustainable.
Satheesan said the government wants to avoid repeating issues faced during the previous Left government’s SilverLine semi-high-speed rail proposal, which faced strong opposition over concerns related to land acquisition, environmental impact and project feasibility.
The SilverLine project had aimed to connect Thiruvananthapuram and Kasaragod with a faster rail corridor, reducing travel time between the two ends of Kerala from more than seven hours to around four hours.
The Kerala government will now examine the recommendations of the expert panel before deciding the next course of action. Officials said further progress on the high-speed rail proposal will depend on additional studies covering economic, environmental and infrastructure-related factors.
