Patna, Nov 26 (IANS): The Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the long-awaited Patna Metro Rail project would be presented in the state cabinet for approval soon, Bihar Urban Development Minister Maheshwar Hazari said on Thursday.

"The Metro project is our priority. The state government is keen to speed up the process to begin construction as soon as possible," Hazari told IANS here.

He said the DPR, after the state cabinet approval, would be sent to the Centre.

The Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES) last year submitted the DPR on the project to the Bihar government, reducing the project estimates to Rs.14,000 crore from Rs.17,000 crore earlier.

An urban development department official said the Bihar government would now work to declare Patna a metropolis as it would help speed up the Metro project, which initially would have two routes.

A corporation on the lines of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation would be formed for monitoring the construction of the project in Patna, he added.

Patna, home to more than two million people, faces traffic congestion on its roads, some of which date back to a millennium ago.