Elattuvalapil Sreedharan is not new to accolades showered on him for engineering feats. His first laurel-winning endeavor dates back to the 1960s when he restored in just 46 days the Pamban Bridge (connecting Rameswaram to mainland in Tamil Nadu), which was blown away in a cyclone in 1964. He executed the mission one month ahead of the deadline.
But, it is the Konkan railways that shot Sreedharan to the pinnacle of fame. Sreedharan was promoted as general manager, Western Railway, in July 1987. Though he retired in June 1990, the government still needed his services and the then railway minister, George Fernandes, appointed him as the CMD of Konkan Railway, on contract. Touted as one of the most difficult railway projects in the world, the 760-km Konkan project had over 150 bridges and 93 tunnels.
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It was the first major project in India to be undertaken on a BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) basis. The Herculean project was completed in the stipulated time of seven years and without much cost overruns.
Sreedharan was born in Varavoor, Thrissur district, Kerala on June 12, 1932. After completing his schooling from Basel Evangelical Mission Higher Secondary School, he went to Victoria College in Palakkad. Later, he completed his civil engineering from the Government Engineering College (presently Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University), Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh.
His foray into metro came when he was appointed deputy engineer of the Calcutta metro. By implementing the first ever metro rail system in the country in 1970, he was laying the foundations for a modern infrastructure engineering which heralded a new era in the public transport culture in this part of the globe.
It was during his stint with Delhi metro rail that he earned the sobriquet 'metro man.' He was made the managing director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation by the then Delhi chief minister, Sahib Singh Verma. In 1997, work on all sections were completed within the respective budget and targeted time frame. The success of Delhi metro was so enormous that he was awarded Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by the government of France, in 2005 and the Padma Vibhushan by the government of India in 2008.
Retiring from DMRC after 16 years of service, Sreedharan joined Kochi Metro Rail project as its principal advisor in 2011. The Kochi Metro, dedicated to the nation by prime minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, is considered a landmark achievement by the state as it marks many firsts - employing transgenders, vertical gardening, using solar power and so. But busy days are ahead for Sreedharan with the Lucknow metro, Jaipur metro and a proposed metro rail system in Andhra Pradesh in the pipeline.
When the audience at the inaugural ceremony of Kochi Metro in Kaloor greeted him with the loudest cheers of all, the retired Indian Engineering Service officer acknowledged it with the humility that was his hallmark. Kochi Metro is just another feather on his cap. And many rest lightly on him.