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The Urban Development Minister of the Indian state of Bihar, Samrat Choudhary, has announced plans to launch a tender process to develop the Patna Metro rail through a public private partnership (PPP) project.

The city of Patna is situated on the southern bank of the Ganges. It is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. The city is home to more than two million people, and congestion is a serious problem.

Minister Samrat Choudhary stated:

In view of high cost, we have decided to opt for PPP model to implement the Patna Metro project.

The total project investment is estimated between Rs150 billion and Rs170 billion (US$2.45 - 2.77 billion).

It is expected that Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES) is set to submit a detailed project report (DPR) and a feasibility study on October 31 to the government of Bihar.

According to the Urban Development Minister, Patna Metro Rail Corporation, a publicly-owned firm similar to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation will be established in order to supervise the construction works. He added that initially the metro rail will be run on two routes, followed by other routes at a later stage.

Sequence of events:

• On 14 September 2011 the Planning Commission of India gave approval for the Patna Metro project.

• On 11 June 2013, Bihar cabinet approved the proposal to prepare a DPR for the project.

• On 18 June 2013 the Bihar government signed a MoU with the consultant, RITES, for feasibility study and DPR preparation for the railway project.

• On 17 June 2014, the planned Patna Metro project received the green light.