Mr Reddy said the bifurcation of state has neither impacted the project nor will it in the near future
The government is yet to take a decision on whether to launch Metro operations in phases, or wait till the project gets over by July 2017.
Hyderabad: In what could be a disappointment for Hyderabadis, the Hyderabad Metro Rail may not roll out its services any time soon. HMR managing director N.V.S. Reddy said, “The government will think of beginning operations only after the Nagole-Mettuguda route is extended till Secunderabad railway station, and it would be possible only in the early-2016. However, the government is yet to take a decision on whether to launch Metro operations in phases, or wait till the entire project gets completed by July 2017.” Mr Reddy was speaking at a ‘Meet the Press’ event organised by the Hyderabad Union of Journalists, here on Saturday.
As per earlier plans, the Stage-I operations from Nagole to Mettuguda were to commence in March on the occasion of Ugadi, but the plans were shelved after the government raised objection on the ground that it would not serve any purpose unless the route is extended till Secunderabad railway station. Moreover, it said that dropping hundreds of passengers in Mettuguda would lead to traffic issues in that area as the passengers would then need to be transported to the railway station area, where the city bus-stops are located.
Mr Reddy said the bifurcation of state has neither impacted the project nor will it in the near future. “There has not been much impact on the project post bifurcation. At the most, the operational break-even may be delayed by one or two years. Initially, we estimated that the operations would break-even in four to five years. Now it may be six to seven years. Hyderabad as a business hub would never change,” he added.
Mr Reddy expressed confidence that the entire project would be completed by July 2017 as targeted earlier, and works are moving on schedule. He added that the works in old city would commence soon.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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