Metro rail works in Old City to start from March 7

Hyderabad: Metro rail works in the Old City of Hyderabad will start from March 7 starting with Falaknuma, according to the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee.

“The residents of Old City and the Congress party are elated that CM Revanth Reddy has decided to start the metro rail works in the Old City of Hyderabad on March 7 at Falaknuma,” said G Niranjan, TPCC senior vice-president and chairman of Election Commission Coordination Committee said on Sunday.

Extending metro to Old City

Metro services started in Hyderabad in 2017 but the Old City metro rail works stopped at the Mahatma Gandhi Bus Stand due to objections from the AIMIM party, said Niranjan.

“Not only did L&T not agree to the alternative route suggested by the AIMIM party, but also expressed its inability to execute the work as the agreement period expired and the cost of the project had also increased,” he said.

Claiming that AIMIM is responsible for the eight-year delay due to which the project cost has escalated to Rs 2,000 crores, Niranjan said, “In the meeting with the Congress party and other Opposition leaders earlier, AIMIM took an opposing stand and objected to the consensus. Due to the delay caused by them, the cost has now escalated.”

Imliban to Falaknuma stretch to be the costliest

The Metro rail route from Imliban to Falaknuma of Old City could become the costliest due to the rise in costs caused by the delay.

“The metro rail to Old City was a major demand from 2022 onwards. People saw the benefit of the connection from LB Nagar to Miyapur and Parade Ground to the MG bus stand. The movement was faster. But Old City was left out which led to major discontent,” Niranjan said.

In 2023, AIMIM took up with the Bharat Rashtra Samithi government and former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao promised metro services to Old City will be extended. Telangana Congress party also promised to connect the metro to Old City.

“We are fulfilling our promise by starting the works,” said Niranjan.

Congress leaders met the managing director of Hyderabad Metro Rail NVS Reddy on Sunday. “People want CM Revanth Reddy to release the necessary funds for these works without any hindrance and pay special attention to making metro services available to people as soon as possible,” he said.

Metro plan to develop Old City

Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had announced metro rail connectivity to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Shamshabad from MGBS bus stand. The metro rail extension includes widening the road from Darulshifa junction to Falaknuma junction to 100 feet to help in the development of Old City.

The metro alignment is planned from MGBS to Falaknuma via Darulshifa junction. The metro rail will go from Purani Haveli, Ettebar Chowk, Alijakotla, Mir Momin Daira, Haribowli, Shalibanda, Shamsheergunj and Aliabad. Five stations will placed at Salarjung Museum, Charminar, Shalibanda, Shamsheergunj and Falakumna. The 5.5-kilometer stretch will lead to notices to 1,000 properties.

Apart from planning airport metro connectivity from MGBS via Old City, CM Revanth Reddy announced metro stretches in other areas. This includes bridging the gap between LB Nagar metro stations and Nagole metro stations, a distance of 5 km.