If Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) K.T. Rama Rao is miffed about the Centre not clearing the proposed 26-km-₹8,345-crore elevated metro rail line between Lakidikapul and BHEL for not being “feasible”. It also because the only grant received by the State government has been ₹1,204 crore as Viability Gap Funding (VGF) for the first phase of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project built under the Public, Private Partnership (PPP) currently running between three dense traffic corridors of the twin cities.
The Centre assured ₹1,458 crore or little more than 10% of the projected cost of ₹14,156 crore then for the only metro project being built under PPP. The funds were disbursed in stages as per the construction progress in the seven years of construction for completing about 69.2 km-Red Line or Corridor One from L.B. Nagar to Miyapur, Blue Line or Corridor Three from Nagole to Raidurg and Green Line or Corridor Two from Jubilee Bus Station to Imlibun.
The balance amount of ₹254 crore has not been released despite the issue being brought to the notice of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam by KTR himself, according to official sources. Incidentally, Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy, also Secunderabad MP, has been seeking completing the stalled metro rail work for the Green Line from Imlibun into the Old City till Falaknuma, as per the original alignment, when questioned about the pending amount.
