HYDERABAD: The crucial Outer Ring Road (ORR) stretch from Ghatkesar to Pedda Amberpet that provides connectivity to Warangal and Vijayawada, which was completed more than four months ago, awaits green signal from chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao to open it.
Only after the inauguration by the chief minister, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) is likely to open the stretch for the public.
HMDA wrote letters to the state government informing about the completion of the Ghatkesar-Pedda Amberpet stretch (12 km) few months ago after conducting safety and load tests. HMDA is awaiting clearance from the chief minister to inaugurate the stretch.
HMDA official told Express that the 12-km stretch was constructed at a cost of `299.51 crore with the financial assistance from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
HMDA said that if the stretch is opened for vehicles, they can collect toll tax from the vehicles using the stretch and the same would be utilised for maintaining the stretch.
HMDA had faced several hurdles in the completion of the entire ORR (leftover stretch from Shamirpet to Ghatkesar). The 158-km ORR, for which works began in 2007, saw HMDA missing several deadlines for completion of the project.
The latest deadline is 2016, which includes completion of service roads as well and stretch between Shamirpet to Keesara (10.30 km), few leftover roads and junctions such as Kandlakoya.
Of the total 158 km, HMDA had completed 124 km and opened up the Gachibowli-Shamshabad stretch (Phase I), Pedda Amberpet-Shamshabad stretch, Narsingi-Patancheru stretch and Patancheru-Shamirpet stretch (Phase II-A) for traffic since 2009.
Shamirpet-Pedda Amberpet stretch (38 km) was taken up in 2010 and it was divided into three packages that include Shamirpet-Keesara (10.30 km, `195.09 crore), Keesara- Ghatkesar (11 km, `347.84 crore) and Ghatkesar-Pedda Amberpet (12 km, `299.51 crore)
Keesara-Ghatkesar stretch is also ready except for construction of Road over Bridge (RoB) at Ghatkesar by the South Central Railway which is going to start soon.
The Railways has cleared the designs and once they provide line clearances, the work on erecting girders will commence, HMDA officials said.
extended orr
12-km stretch is constructed at a cost of `299.51 crore with the financial assistance from Japan International Cooperation Agency. Only after the inauguration by the chief minister, HMDA is likely to open the stretch for the public