Hyderabad: A Revanth Reddy to lay stone for Old City Metro today

Hyderabad : The Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will lay the foundation stone at Falaknuma for Metro rail works for the long pending 5.5 km stretch from MGBS to Falaknuma on Friday.

The plan of Phase I Metro of Corridor II Green Line JBS to Falaknuma was ignored for years. There will be 4 stations from MGBS, namely Salarjung Museum, Charminar, Shalibanda and Falaknuma. The alignment will pass through Darulshifa – Puranihaveli –Etebarchowk – Alijakotla – Mir Momin Daira – Haribowli – Shalibanda – Shamsheergunj – Aliabad and ends at Falaknuma Metro Rail station. Around 1100 properties will be affected in road widening upto 100 feet as per the master plan and to 120 feet at the station locations. The project is expected to cost about Rs 2,000 Cr including for road widening and shifting of the utilities.

Congress party senior leader K Venkatesh who was part of the long struggle for getting the Metro to Old City recalled how the party has remained steadfast in pressing the authorities, ever since it came to light that the 5.5 km stretch was ignored.

“It would have been started in the year 2017but owing to reluctance by the AIMIM leadership failed to materialise. The dream of Metro running through the heart of historic City will now become a reality, as Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has taken up this as a priority,” he felt.

Meanwhile some of the leaders under the Hyderabad Parliamentary constituency have given a call to boycott the event where CM will be laying the foundation stone at Falaknuma. The leaders from parts of Old City, particularly those who have taken a tough stance against the rival AIMIM have demanded the party leadership to maintain a distance with City based party’s top leadership. This is believed to be a fallout of Hyderabad incharge Minister Ponnam Prabhakar’s firm stance of having ‘amiable behavior’ with the top leaders of AIMIM. A day after questioning the Minister during an internal meeting on Wednesday, they remain apprehensive about Revanth Reddy’s message on the occasion and his demeanor vis-à-vis AIMIM’s leaders present there.

“Given the unchangeable behavior of Ponnam, it is being perceived that even Revanth may have a similar approach. We, who have been fighting it out against the political organisation like Majlis are turning out to be fools,” said a leader based in Old City who gave the boycott call.