Modi Boards Hyderabad Metro With Telangana CM in Inaugural Run
PM Modi flagged off the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project on Tuesday afternoon.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated phase 1 of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project on Tuesday, 28 November. Commercial operations on the 30-km first phase of the project, between Miyapur and Nagole, will start on Wednesday. Hyderabad is decked up to host Ivanka Trump and other dignitaries at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), from 28-20 November.
- PM Modi flags off phase 1 of the Hyderabad Metro Rail, scheduled to ride the metro’s inaugural run from Miyapur to Kukatpally and back
- The 30-km metro stretch from Nagole to Miyapur will begin commercial operations from Wednesday, 29 November
- CM K Chandrashekhar Rao received the PM at the airport
- Old city saw protests ahead of the inaugural ceremony, with opposition parties demanding metro services in the area
Modi Flags Off Hyderabad Metro Rail
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated phase 1 of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project. In its first phase, the metro will travel 30 km between Miyapur and Nagole, covering 24 stations. The commercial operations of phase 1 will be thrown open on Wednesday, 29 November.
The PM was received at the airport by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao.
PM Modi to Launch Metro Rail Project
The 30-km first phase of the Metro Rail project between Miyapur and Nagole, having 24 stations, will be launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at 2:15 pm on Tuesday, 28 November, at Miyapur station. Its commercial operations will start on Wednesday.
The trains will run from 6 am to 10 pm initially, and the timings will be rescheduled to 5:30 am and 11 pm, depending on traffic and demand, Telangana's Information Technology Minister KT Rama Rao said on Saturday, 25 November.
Protests in Old City
On Monday, 27 November, various political parties protested in Old City, demanding the extension of Metro Rail services to the Old City. Led by Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader Rashid Sharif, the rally began from Old City's TRS Bhavan.
Several leaders from the Congress, BJP, CPI, TDP, and the CPI(M) took part in the rally, reported The Times of India. The rally was, however, hindered by the police who arrested some of the protesters.
Old City Advocates Joint Action Committee (JAC) convenor M Prabhu also told TOI that the second phase of Metro work “should include the stretch from the Mahatma Gandhi bus station (MGBS) to Falaknuma.”
Telangana Movement Delayed the Project
The construction for the Metro Rail project could start in 2012, but the movement for separate statehood to Telangana had put a big question mark on its future.
When Telangana was carved out as a separate state from Andhra Pradesh in 2014, L&T was concerned that the project may not be viable in post-bifurcation Hyderabad.
The Telangana government also proposed changes in alignment at three points, leading to further delay.
Congress Claims Credit for the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project
The Congress has claimed credit for the Hyderabad Metro Rail project, but the ruling TRS hit back at the Opposition saying it was not planned properly.
Claiming that the Hyderabad Metro Rail was an "achievement of the Congress,” Telangana Congress president N Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the present TRS government was wrongly trying to take credit for the project.
Reddy also alleged that neither the TRS government in Telangana nor the BJP government at the Centre made any contribution to the project.
Countering the Congress’ comments, state Animal Husbandry Minister T Srinivas Yadav said the previous Congress governments could not plan the project properly.
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