Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy today kicked off the civil works of the 5182 crore Kochi Metro Rail project at a function held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium ground in Kochi this morning.

Inaugurating the works, the Chief Minister said the work on the 25 km long rail project is slated to be completed within 1095 days.

He said, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, which is executing the work, will also undertake a feasibility study to extend the project to the suburban areas of the city. It will submit its report to the government within six months.

Mr Chandy said, the state government will enter into a consultancy agreement with DMRC for the Mono Rail projects in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode cities, which will be signed within one week.

He said, the preliminary works on these projects will begin by August, for which the state government has accorded administrative sanction of 5,000 crore rupees.

Speaking on the occasion, Secretary, Union Ministry of Urban Development, Dr Sudhir Krishna said the Kochi Metro rail project's aim is to provide a modern, reliable and safe mode of transport for the city.

He said the transport system envisaged is the seamless integration of Kochi Metro Rail with the waterways and bus systems in the city.