Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has constituted an expert committee to examine a proposal for a high-speed railway corridor connecting Thiruvananthapuram and Kannur, based on an interim report submitted by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).

According to a government order issued by the Transport Department on June 5, DMRC has prepared and submitted an interim report for the implementation of the Kerala High-Speed Rail project, envisaging a standard-gauge rail corridor spanning 473.20 kilometres from Thiruvananthapuram to Kannur.

The committee has been tasked with conducting a detailed assessment of the proposal from technical, financial and environmental perspectives before the government takes a decision on the project.

The expert panel will be headed by the Secretary, Transport (Railways), who will serve as the convenor. The other members are railway expert J Vinayan, retired Principal Chief Commercial Manager of Southern Railway; finance expert Dr C Veeramani, Director of the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Thiruvananthapuram; and environmental expert Sridhar Radhakrishnan.

N S K Umesh IAS, Officer on Special Duty to the Chief Minister, will assist the Transport Secretary and facilitate the functioning of the committee. The government has directed the committee to undertake a comprehensive examination of the proposed rail corridor, including its technical feasibility, financial viability, environmental implications, implementation challenges and potential socio-economic benefits for the state.

The panel has been asked to submit its remarks and recommendations within three weeks from the date of the order.

The committee was constituted based on a proposal on Kerala High-Speed Rail forwarded by the Secretary to the Chief Minister, drawing on the interim report prepared by DMRC. The order was issued by Transport Secretary K Biju IAS.