122.9 km ₹38,595-crore Hyderabad Metro Rail expansion plan awaits Centre-State JV
Officials concerned say the government cannot access low-interest funding for the proposed acquisition or proceed with the metro expansion without clearances from the Centre
Hyderabad Metro Rail expansion, a ₹38,595-crore endeavor, is awaiting approval from the Centre and State governments. The 122.9 km Phase II project, overseen by Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, is currently stuck in a mix of financial, regulatory, and administrative hurdles. The plan requires equal equity participation in a Centre-State joint venture, but the acquisition of the existing 69.2-km Phase I network from L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Ltd faces multiple approvals.
The Central government's involvement is mandated by provisions under the Railway Act and Metro Rail Act, necessitating safety certification from the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety and various clearances. SBI Capital Markets is exploring a soft loan of ₹13,500 crore, but the previous ₹13,527-crore loan proposal from IRFC failed due to IRFC's mandate being limited to new infrastructure financing.
Recent high-level meetings between Revanth Reddy and Union Ministers aimed to resolve the impasse, with the proposed solution involving a unified metro entity and SBI Caps identifying a lender for the soft loan. The government is ready to release its equity contribution once the loan is secured and if SBI Caps aligns with the valuation.
Additional efforts are being made to procure 60 more coaches for the existing network, which also require statutory clearances from agencies like RDSO and CMRS.
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