The Prime Minister, Pravind Jugnauth, inaugurated yesterday the Metro Express Link between Phoenix and Curepipe. Phase 2C of the Metro Express, linking Phoenix to Curepipe, is now operational as of this morning.
Present at the ceremony were the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister of Housing and Physical Planning, the Minister of Tourism, Mr. Louis Steven Obeegadoo; the Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Mr. Alan Ganoo; the Indian High Commissioner to Mauritius, Mrs. K. Nandini Singla; Members of Parliament; senior civil servants, the CEO of Metro Express Ltd, Dr. Das Mootanah, and other dignitaries.
In his speech, the Prime Minister, Pravind Jugnauth, surrounded by the Deputy Prime Minister, Steven Obeegadoo, the Minister of Transport, Alan Ganoo, MP Kenny Dhunnoo, the Indian Ambassador to Mauritius, Nandini K Singh, and PPS Gilbert Bablee, the Mayor of Curepipe, Hans Marguerite as well as other political figures. The PM and other guests boarded the streetcar for the inaugural trip.
At the Phoenix Mall Station, the PM addressed the audience. He expressed his satisfaction and great pride in seeing this project come to fruition. He reminded us that in 2008, he had spoken about the need for modern public transportation. Today, we are offering the population a modern, comfortable, fast and reliable transportation system, and above all, a system that improves the lives of Metro Express commuters. The cities, and the places where the metro will pass, will be dramatically transformed. Already, major stations are seeing the development of Urban Terminals. The Quatre Bornes-Curepipe line required major infrastructure work, and this was made possible with the collaboration of the CEB, the CWA, Waste Water and the people who were displaced. He emphasized once again, the public-private partnership. Phoenix Shopping Mall, this station, built and financed by Ascensia Ltd, is directly integrated with the Phoenix Shopping Mall. Now, work continues on the Rose-Hill-Reduce line. The Réduit station has been named Mahatma Gandhi station in honor of Mahatma Gandhi who had visited Mauritius and, similarly, because we share a special relationship with India and to express our gratitude to India, he stressed. The country, the government thanks Narendra Modi, his government and the people of India who are funding this project and will fund the extension of the Reduced Line to Cote d’Or.
The Indian ambassador thanked the PM for giving her the opportunity to speak. India has many development projects and partnerships with many countries, but this is probably one of the few occasions when a project has been executed with such excellence and ahead of schedule, she shared. India is happy to participate in development projects. She recalled that it is a feat to see such a project done well and on time despite Covid. She congratulated the PM for his leadership and participation in this project, and Larsen and Toubro for a job well done. This Metro project is a flagship for India as it is the only transport project in Africa that has been funded and implemented by India. All this demonstrates the unique relationship between India and Mauritius.
Deputy Prime Minister Obeegadoo said that the Metro Express is an iconic and visionary project that has brought economic development in its wake.
Dr. Das Mootanah expressed his pride in seeing the Metro Express project being launched in the city of Curepipe despite the many challenges encountered in its implementation on this route.
