Prepartory works for Old City metro rail started: HMRL

In the coming month, the HMRL authorities will also issue land acquisition notices to 1000 properties for taking-up the balance work of the metro rail in old city

Hyderabad: In a major boost to metro rail at Old city, the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) on Sunday said that it has started the preparatory works for undertaking the prestigious metro rail project. In the coming month, the HMRL authorities will also issue land acquisition notices to 1,000 properties for taking-up the balance work of the metro rail in old city.

The 5.5km balance metro alignment in old city is from MGBS to Falaknuma via Darulshifa junction – Purani Haveli – Ettebar Chowk – Alijakotla – Mir Momin Daira – Haribowli – Shalibanda – Shamsheergunj and Aliabad. There will be 5 stations including Salarjung Museum, Charminar, Shalibanda, Shamsheergunj and Falaknuma. Though the metro station locations are about 500 meters away from Salarjung Museum and Charminar, these two stations are being named after them in view of their importance and pride of place in the city, HMRL, MD, NVS Reddy said.

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There are 103 religious and other sensitive structures including 21 masjids, 12 temples, 12 Ashoorkhanas, 33 dargas, 7 graveyards and 6 chillas in this stretch. Through engineering solutions like adjustment of curvature, viaduct design and heights, suitable alteration of metro pillar locations etc., other than four of all these religious/sensitive structures have been saved, he said.

On the instructions of Chief Minister, K Chandrashekhar Rao and Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD), KT Rama Rao, further engineering refinement is being done to the metro alignment to save the religious structures. To save the religious/sensitive structures, road widening will be restricted to 80 feet. Learning lessons from the Phase 1 project in the rest of the city, road will be widened at the station locations to 120 feet. Preparation of individual sketches of the 1000 odd affected properties has started and land acquisition notices will be issued in about a month, NVS Reddy said.