By Apurva Bhatt

The five projects worth rs 11.440 crore under MUTP 3 could soon by started by consultants. The Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) has initiated the process to appoint consultants for the key railway projects under MUTP 3, these include; V.irar-Dahanu quadrupling, Airoli-Kalwa elevated link and Panvel-Karjat doubling.

A MRVC official said, "The project cost was estimated on a pre-feasibility study. We will appoint a consultant who will mark the exact alignment on the ground, location of bridges, geo-technical survey and actual cost of the project, based on which work tenders can be invited," The consultant will take atleast six working months to complete the project.

The official said, "The consultant can't undertake work during the monsoon, hence the report will come only by December 2016." Airoli-Kalwa rail link project aims to provide direct connectivity between Kalyan and Navi Mumbai and will enable the railways to run 40 services between Kalyan and Navi Mumbai.

The project can be completed in less than a year as there are no major engineering challenges or land acquisition issues. The quadrupling of Virar-Dahanu corridor will help segregate mail/express and suburban traffic, thus opening up tracks to run more suburban trains. Similarly, doubling of Panvel-Karjat will help run more suburban services.

MRVC has already done preparatory work for the mid-section trespassing control project and station redevelopment.