The Chennai Metro Rail is facing a significant worker shortage of nearly 40% at its construction sites for the ongoing ₹63,246-crore Phase II project.

This ambitious project aims to create a 118.9-km network across three corridors: Madhavaram to SIPCOT (Corridor 3), Light House to Poonamallee (Corridor 4), and Madhavaram to Sholinganallur (Corridor 5). Over the past couple of years, thousands of workers from states like Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh have been employed in Chennai.

According to officials from Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), the shortage began in April when many workers returned to their hometowns to vote in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. “We anticipated they would return by late May or early June, but many have yet to come back. We’ve urged contractors to recruit new workers and bring them to the city, but progress has been limited,” one official explained.

Initially, some contractors arranged for workers to fly in, while others traveled by train. However, these efforts have not been enough to close the gap. “We’re facing about a 40% shortfall in workers,” the official added.

Officials noted that the worker numbers are particularly low along the elevated sections of Corridor 5. “Currently, our priority is to open the Poonamallee-Porur segment of Corridor 4 next year, so we’ve mobilized as many workers as possible for this area, and there are no major issues there,” another official stated.

However, sources indicated that even this prioritized segment is experiencing a worker shortage, making it challenging to complete the work by the projected deadline. Elevated corridors typically require more labour than underground sections.

“The workers who previously worked here are now finding jobs in Metro Rail and other infrastructure projects in northern and central India, where they have the flexibility to commute between work and home,” one official noted.

(With Inputs From The Hindu)

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The post Chennai Metro Rail Faces 40% Worker Shortage As Labourers From North Indian States Find Infra Jobs Closer To Home appeared first on The Commune.

In yet another instance of disseminating false information at taxpayers’ expense, the TN Fact Check Unit—a controversial state government agency often accused of targeting opposition voices—has wrongly claimed that the Central Government is providing only ₹7,425 crores in funding for the Chennai Metro Rail instead of the actual ₹63,246 crores.

The Fake News Peddled By TN Fact-Check

The DMK government’s TN Fact Check posted on social media that the BJP wrongly claims that the Central Government is funding ₹63246 crores of Phase 2 of the Chennai Metro Rail project.

The post said that the Central Government was funding only ₹7,425 crores, with the state government putting in ₹22228 crores and the rest ₹33593 through loans based on guarantees of the Tamil Nadu government.

சென்னை மெட்ரோவிற்கு ரூ63,246 கோடி நிதி அளித்ததாகப் பொய்!@CMOTamilnadu @TNDIPRNEWS https://t.co/yL6xjdUCM6 pic.twitter.com/fEZnrZKleD

— TN Fact Check (@tn_factcheck) October 4, 2024

You-Turn, a Dravidianist propaganda media outlet whose former Editor-In-Chief now leads the TN Fact Check unit, falsely claimed that the responsibility for repaying the Chennai Metro loan ultimately lies with the state government. They cited an official Government of India press release asserting that the state must step in if Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) cannot meet its repayment commitments. This narrative, however, distorts the actual terms and misrepresents the situation.

What’s The Truth?

The Union Cabinet recently approved Chennai Metro Rail Project Phase 2 as a ‘Central sector’ project at an estimated cost of ₹63,246 crore. Previously, the project was classified as a ‘State sector’ initiative, with the Government of Tamil Nadu responsible for financing nearly 90% of the project cost. The Central Government’s contribution was limited to 10%, excluding land and certain other expenses, as per the 2017 Metro Rail Policy. However, the Centre had helped Tamil Nadu secure ₹32,548 crore in loans from bilateral and multilateral agencies, of which around ₹6,100 crore has been used.

With this new approval, the central government will finance about 65% of the project cost, covering the entire loan amount of ₹33,593 crore, along with equity and subordinate debt of ₹7,425 crore. The State Government will fund the remaining 35%.

The loans from international agencies will now be treated as central government loans and routed directly to Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) through the Centre’s budget instead of through the State Government. This change relieves Tamil Nadu of securing loan financing for the project, freeing up ₹33,593 crore for other state development activities.

The Ministry of Finance will renegotiate loan terms with agencies like the Japan International Cooperation Agency, Asian Development Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and New Development Bank to treat the loans as central government debt. The loan flow will now go from these agencies to the central government and then directly to CMRL. The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs, through CMRL, will take over as the project’s executing agency from the State Government.

CMRL will be responsible for repaying the loans, typically starting after a five-year moratorium. That means, this repayment will start tentatively from 2032. If CMRL is unable to repay, the State Government will be obligated to provide financial support for the repayment. The CMRL is a joint venture of Government of India and the State Government of Tamil Nadu.

It is utterly absurd to prematurely assume that CMRL will be unable to service the loan, especially given the potential for increased ridership and passenger growth. This raises the question: has the TN Fact Check Unit somehow time-travelled and assessed CMRL’s financial status years ahead? Their conclusions seem far-fetched and speculative at best.

Other Instances Of TN Fact-Check Peddling Fake News

Previously on 24 January 2024, The official Tamil Nadu BJP handle released a video alleging severe food shortages at the MGR Stadium in Madurai, claiming athletes were provided only a chapati and a half-boiled egg. Athletes and coaches raised concerns about the inadequate food portions, with reports indicating a private contractor managing the food arrangements. The district administration, including Collector Sangeetha, intervened, assuring prompt resolution of the issues within a day. DMK MP Venkatesan emphasized the potential harm to Tamil Nadu’s reputation, and the official fact-check team of the state government refuted the claims, labeling them as fake news.

In November 2023, when allegations of Aavin reducing fat content in the green packet milk surfaced, instead of proving that the milk contained a specific amount of fat as claimed or other details that pertained to the topic of discussion, the FCU’s Mission Director ended up fact-checking the “container” in which the sample was received.

About TN Fact Check

The DMK government in Tamil Nadu has faced criticism for establishing a state-run FCU. Critics allege that this unit, headed by former and Dravidian propagandist YouTuber Iyan Karthikeyan, was created without transparency and aimed to crack down on dissent. Concerns have been raised about the lack of public notice for job recruitment and potential favouritism in appointments, sparking allegations of suppressing free speech and to cover-up government fallacies. A public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed against the unit in the Madras High Court, challenging its constitutionality.

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The post Taxpayer-Funded DMK Govt’s Fact-Check Unit Peddles Fake News About Chennai Metro Rail Funding, Centre To Fund Almost 65% Of Phase 2 appeared first on The Commune.