Alignment yet to be finalised
The proposed front view of the Punjagutta mall
Hyderabad: An estimated Rs 7,000 crore has been spent by Larsen & Toubro in building the Metro rail pillars, viaducts as well as the two depots at Uppal and Miyapur, while the state government has spent another Rs 1,700 crore on acquisition of properties and settlement for acquisitions. On Wednesday, L&T unveiled the plans for three malls and office spaces at Panjagutta, Erramanzil and Hitec City. L&T officials are confident that life will get much easier in the city once the project is completed. The Metro stations will be having pharmacies, food courts, beauty salons, coffee shops, mobile recharge stores, laundry and ATM kiosks.
The entire project, with the three completed phases, is to be commissioned by July 2017. N.V.S. Reddy, the managing director of Hyderabad Metro Rail, said, “We are working to complete the project on time.” Meanwhile, managing director of L&T Metro Rail V.B. Gadgil said, “The alignment changes will have to be finalised by the TS government. The deadline of July 2017 does not take into consideration the changes in the alignment. The project is at a crucial stage as works are now being carried out in densely populated areas. There needs to be proper monitoring for safety and also to ensure that traffic flow is not affected.”
The works are now moving towards the heart of the city — Panjagutta, Ameerpet Greenlands Junction and Jubilee Hills Checkpost. While the cost of the Metro project was initially estimated to be Rs 14,132 crore, it is likely to go up to Rs 20,000 crore. A senior officer said, “Due to the new Land Ceiling Act, the properties that are yet to be acquired by HMR are pushing up the cost (as the land owners will now have to be paid the revised relief package).”
For that reason, Transit-Oriented Real Estate Development is being planned as a way to generate revenue. Space will be given to malls, offices, healthcare centres, hospitality units as well as entertainment centres. Currently, work on three projects, spread over an area of 1.1 million sq. ft, is underway.
A total of 18.5 million sq. ft has been given to L&T for real estate development. While these three spaces are being developed, the remaining area will be developed depending on the market demands over a span of eight to 10 years.
Old city mapping taking time
Technical studies on the proposed 3.2-km Metro Rail stretch in the old city are taking time as ground engineers are finding it difficult to map the area, according to L&T officers. The Telangana state government had suggested re-alignment of the Metro Rail in the old city area. Survey reports and technical assessment for the Assembly area and Sultan Bazaar have been submitted to the government. The survey of the old city area is pending.
The proposed re-alignment in the old city is to take the Metro along the Musi river and through Bahadurpura and Kalapathar to Falaknuma. The original alignment was Darulshifa, Mir Alam Mandi, Etebar Chowk, Moghalpura and other densely populated areas.
A senior officer said, “The topography and geology have to be studied for the foundation work. Whenever our officers go there for investigations, there is a lot of resistance.” Asked how much time it would take, HMR’s MD N.V.S Reddy said, “We are working on it and it will be submitted to the government soon.”
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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