3 weeks ago
Hyderabad Metro Old City Expansion Delayed While Andhra Pradesh Advances
Hyderabad is a very big city in India, and lots of people travel across it every day.
A metro is a train that runs on raised tracks, and Hyderabad already has one.
But the metro does not reach the Old City, the oldest part of town where the famous Charminar monument stands.
The state government promised a new metro line that would go all the way to the Old City.
Last year, the company that was helping build the metro, called L&T, quit the project.
Since then, the Telangana government has been trying to get money and permission from the central government in Delhi.
The leader of Telangana says the central government is not helping enough and is creating problems.
At the same time, the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh is getting two of its own metro projects approved quickly.
The Telangana government is still buying land in the Old City, hoping the metro will really be built one day.
L&T announced its exit from the Hyderabad Metro project last year, leaving the Telangana government to manage it on its own.
The central government agreed only about a month ago to help Telangana devise a financial plan for the metro's phase-2 expansion.
Chief Minister Revanth Reddy accused the Narendra Modi-led Centre of creating hurdles for a Rs 13,600 crore loan from the Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC).
Andhra Pradesh's metro DPRs for Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada moved to the Centre's financial appraisal division with a combined phase-1 investment of ₹21,616 crore for 84.63 km.
The phase-1 Hyderabad metro's Red line stops short of the Old City and Charminar, while the state proceeds with land acquisition there for a new line.
- Who
- Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, L&T, and the central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
- What
- The proposed Hyderabad Metro expansion into the Old City and a new airport line remain delayed after L&T's exit, while Andhra Pradesh's metro projects in Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada are advancing.
- Where
- Hyderabad, Telangana, and Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, India.
- When
- L&T announced its exit last year; the Centre agreed to help with a financial plan about a month ago, after about six years of a fully functional phase-1 network.
- Why
- L&T's exit left Telangana to fund the project alone, and the state says the Centre has been slow to approve phase-2 funding, while AP's NDA-aligned government successfully secured central equity funding.
Telangana government and metro supporters
Central government and NDA states
Funding hurdles for Hyderabad Metro phase-2
Telangana government and metro supporters
Revanth Reddy accused the Centre of creating hurdles for a Rs 13,600 crore IRFC loan, and the author says Telangana is effectively being punished for being a non-BJP-aligned state.
Central government and NDA states
The Centre agreed about a month ago to help Telangana devise a financial plan for the project, indicating it is engaging with the project's funding requirements.
Speed of metro project approvals
Telangana government and metro supporters
Hyderabad's phase-2 has waited for approval for years, and the author argues AP's projects move through the Centre faster because AP is part of the ruling NDA.
Central government and NDA states
Andhra Pradesh's projects advanced because CM Chandrababu Naidu actively pushed officials to negotiate for and secure 100% central equity funding, with DPRs now in the financial appraisal division.
Key facts
- Hyderabad Metro phase-1 length
- 69.2 km
- Phase-1 lines
- Blue (Nagole-Hitech City), Red (Miyapur-LB Nagar), Green (JBS-MGBS)
- L&T exit
- Announced last year
- IRFC loan sought by Telangana
- Rs 13,600 crore
- AP combined phase-1 network
- 84.63 km across Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada
- AP combined estimated investment
- ₹21,616 crore
- Phase-1 fully functional since
- About six years
- Old City metro status
- Phase-2 line planned near Charminar; land acquisition underway
Sources
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