The Kochi Metro is a rapid transit system serving the city of Kochi in Kerala, India. It was opened to the public within four years of starting construction, making it one of the fastest completed metro projects in India. The Kochi metro project is the first metro in the country which connects rail, road and water transport facilities. The first phase is being set up at an estimated cost of . In October 2017, Kochi Metro was named the Best Urban Mobility Project in India by the Urban Development Ministry, as part of the Urban Mobility India (UMI) international conference hosted by the ministry every year. The construction work was started in June 2013 and a section of the line from Aluva to Palarivattom was opened to passengers on 17 June 2017 by Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India. A second section from Palarivattom to Maharaja's College metro station was inaugurated on 3 October 2017. Another section from Maharaja's College Stadium to Thaikoodam was inaugurated on 3 September 2019 by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri. Kochi metro also includes the technology for driverless trains and is hoping to implement this in the near future. Kochi Metro was lauded for its decision to employ Kudumbashree workers and also members of the transgender community. It is the world's first rapid transit system whose entire management operations are handled by women. The system is also involved in sustainable initiatives with the introduction of non-motorized transport corridors in the city, installation of solar panels for power and vertical garden on every sixth metro pillar. Apart from the regular tickets, it has also adopted a single card, single timetable and a singular command and control. This debit card along with the Kochi One Mobile App will allow passengers to access all modes of public transportation as well as be utilized for mercantile and internet transactions and will introduce the 'click and collect' feature in the near future where goods ordered online can be collected in the metro stations. Every Kochi Metro station is designed on a specific theme around Kerala culture and geography. Planning The government led by E.K. Nayanar ideated the project in 1999. The cabinet meeting held on 21 July 1999, of the then Left Democratic Front (Kerala) government, assigned Rail India Technological and Economic Services (RITES) for the feasibility study for