Centre asks Telangana not to meddle with Hyderabad Metro design
The Union Government has asked the government of the newly-formed Telangana state to refrain from meddling with the design of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project. The Union Government’s advice to Telangana government comes against the backdrop of concerns raised by infrastructure firm L&T, which is executing the over Rs 16,000-crore project.
In an announcement made in the assembly last month, TRS leader and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had said that L&T will not be given the permission to proceed in the elevated format at major heritage structures.
In opposition to the Metro project’s alignment at key locations, Rao had asked L&T to explore alternatives including the option of going underground — an option which L&T said would increase the cost of the project and lead to delays in its completion.
With the company already having suffered significant cost and time overruns in executing the project, it expressed concerns that the option of going underground would make the entire undertaking unviable in terms of escalated project costs.
Against the backdrop of L&T’s concerns, the Telangana government has been told not to tinker with the Metro design. Finance secretary Arvind Mayaram said in a July 2 correspondence with Telangana chief secretary: “Time-bound implementation to approved design is essential for ensuring cost-efficiency and boosting sentiment in the infrastructure sector.”
Source – The Economic Times
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