In Telengana, transport projects not on track

Rail project delays indicate that public transport is not a priority of the Telangana Government

It is going to be a while before Hyderabad sees the next phase of metro rail. File

In November 2021, the ₹14,132 crore Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR), built on the public-private partnership (PPP) mode by the concessionaire, L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad), completed four years. It is going to be a while before the Telangana capital sees the next phase of metro rail .

The first phase of the 69.2-km metro passing through three dense corridors of the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad was until recently the second largest metro rail network after Delhi. It seems like it is going to lose this tag soon as other cities are either extending or building new metro networks at a rapid pace.

 

Hyderabad is unlikely to improve the public transport system as there is no progress in the proposed second phase of the metro linking Gachibowli to the Shamshabad International Airport. Three years ago, the State Government had announced the acceptance of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s detailed project report to build a ‘fast metro’ over 31 km at a cost of ₹9,000 crore. But no steps were taken thereafter.

Another proposal was to connect Nagole and L.B. Nagar (5 km). This was to complete the circular route of the first phase of the metro rail connecting all the terminal stations. There was also promise of a new line from BHEL-R.C. Puram to Lakdikapul (21 km). Till the COVID-19 outbreak, HMR was carrying more than 4 lakh passengers a day and saved an estimated 4.7 crore litres of fuel.

Last year, L&TMRH declared a loss of about ₹1,780 crore due to COVID-19-induced lockdowns and sought ‘suitable compensation’ as project ‘delays’. These include, for instance, the present ruling dispensation demanding an alignment change to protect the heritage at Sultan Bazar and near the Legislative Assembly and disallowing the metro in the Old City bowing to the pressure from the Majlis Party. Later, this was completed according to the original alignment save for the Old City route. A committee headed by the Chief Secretary has been formed to “look into the issue” of providing compensation to L&TMRH. The Centre too has not helped matters by withholding the release of the balance amount of ₹254 crore of the ₹1,458 crore it had assured for the project.

Prior to the metro rail project, the capital region was serviced by the ground rail-based Multi-Modal Transport System (MMTS) built and run jointly with the Indian Railways connecting Hyderabad-Secunderabad-Falaknuma-Lingampally. It was launched in 2003. Phase II of the project has been stalled for the past three years with the State Government inexplicably not releasing its share of about ₹500 crore. As a result, South Central Railway has delayed implementation despite completing a majority of the work. And so, people on the outskirts and the surrounding villages are being deprived of an affordable and quick transport mode to and fro from the twin cities. The ticket for MMTS starts at ₹5 and the metro fare begins from ₹10. These were projects initiated in united Andhra Pradesh.

The Telangana Government sought a 32-km extension of the Ghatkesar line (part of Phase 2) till Raigir, three km away from Yadadari, where redevelopment of the Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple is nearing completion, a project dear to the Chief Minister. But tenders had to be cancelled as the Government did not release ₹290 crore of the estimated cost of ₹412.26 crore. All this is enough indication that public transport is not a priority of the Government despite its proclamations. With the public sector TSRTC having its own infrastructure limitations, citizens of the twin cities are still sadly forced to depend on private transport.

geetanath.v@thehindu.co.in