The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has been awarded the contract for the operation and maintenance of the first fully underground Metro line in Mumbai, Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ Metro Line 3, by the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC).

In a release on Friday, the MMRC said that the contract awarded to the DMRC is for 10 years and the company has emerged as the lowest bidder in an international competitive bidding process to make Metro Line 3 operational soon.

The DMRC has been successfully operating and maintaining the Delhi Metro for over two decades and is considered a pioneer in the Metro Sector in India.

As per the contract, the DMRC will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the metro line and will be governed by key performance indicators (KPIs) which include managing the operation control centre (OCC) and the depot control centre (DCC), running trains, maintaining stations and trains, looking after all metro systems infrastructure, and ensuring the safety of passengers.

However, other important duties like revenue management, public relations, business and brand management, legal compliances, multimodal integration, non-fare box revenues, debt-servicing, coordination with regulatory authorities, etc. will still be under the authority of MMRC.

Ashwini Bhide, Managing Director of the MMRC, said that the MMRC is committed to providing safe, comfortable, reliable and high-quality but cost-effective services to the passengers. The release also stated that awarding the operation and maintenance contract was a “significant milestone for the MMRC in making the line operations.”