Thiruvananthapuram: People belonging to 11 districts have given their response to the probability of having the Kerala High-Speed Rail Corporation. C fore, a research organisation based in Gurgaon which conducted a survey, found 86 percent of respondents approving the project, while 9 percent opposed citing displacement people and the rest remained neutral. The study was conducted between November 23 and January 14. In all 13, 447 adults representing various castes and communities were interviewed from 110 assembly constituencies.
The survey has a margin of error of one percent at 95 percent confidence level. The main reason given by respondents for approval of the project was saving of time in commuting from one part of Kerala to another. “Some 73 percent of the interviewees were aware of the project, and of them, 88 percent approved of the project. The approval rating was over 80 percent in each of the eleven districts where the survey was conducted. Many respondents believed that decreasing pollution as better public transport would result in less number of private vehicles being used which cause pollution,” said Premchand Paletti, the chief executive officer of the research firm.
In each assembly constituency, 100-120 voters were interviewed using a structured schedule. The respondents were randomly selected from voter list using special computer software. In each of the 11 districts, about 1200 voters were interviewed. The sample was represented by 49 percent females. The survey report has since been submitted to the Kerala High-Speed Rail Corporation Ltd officials.
Last July, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation had submitted the Detailed Project Report to the state Government on High-Speed Rail Corridor from Thiruvananthapuram to Kannur. The DPR says that the preliminary cost towards the project would be Rs 77, 000 crore and when the tax is also included, it will shoot up to Rs 90, 000 crore. The project is expected to be completed in nine years. In the first phase, the corridor will be built from Thiruvananthapuram to Kannur.
