HYDERABAD: Stating that the Centre has already agreed in principle for the construction of Hyderabad Metro Rail Phase 2 project, Union minister G Kishan Reddy on Friday said that the state government should first complete the process of taking over the Phase 1 and its operations from Larsen & Toubro (L&T)
In a letter addressed to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, the Union minister recalled that the state government had sought approval from the Centre to take up the Metro Phase 2 project in view of the city’s growing transport needs. He also mentioned that the state government had announced its decision to take over the ongoing Metro Phase 1 operations from L&T and manage the project on its own.
Kishan Reddy further stated that he had a discussion with Union Urban Development Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and discussed the construction of Metro Phase 2.
“Union minister Manohar Lal Khattar suggested that the state government should first finalise all the decisions, and complete all agreements and financial transactions related to taking over Phase 1 from L&T. Only after the takeover process is completed, the Centre would initiate further action on Phase 2,” he said.
Kishan Reddy also said Khattar had informed him that a joint committee, comprising officials from both the Centre and the state government should be formed to oversee the takeover of Phase-I and prepare for Phase-II construction, as discussed earlier with Revanth Reddy.
Accordingly, it was decided to constitute a committee with two officials from the state government and two from the Union government, Kishan Reddy said and sought to know as to why the state government has not forwarded the names so far. He urged the chief minister to immediately nominate two officials so that the meeting of the joint committee could be held at the earliest.
Kishan Reddy also requested the state government to expedite the takeover of the Metro network from L&T and submit the proposals required for Metro Phase-II to the Centre. He appealed for swift action to ensure early completion of the process and commencement of Phase-II works.
Joint committee to oversee the process
In his letter to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, Union minister G Kishan Reddy also said Union Urban Development Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had informed him that a joint committee, comprising officials from both the Centre and the state government, should be formed to oversee the takeover of Phase-I and prepare for Phase-II construction, as discussed earlier.
Accordingly, it was decided to constitute a committee with two officials from the state government and two from the Union government, Kishan Reddy said and sought to know as to why the state has not forwarded the names so far. He urged the CM to immediately nominate two officials so that the meeting of the joint committee could be held at the earliest.