Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has directed officials to plan a Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system in congested parts of Hyderabad and improve connectivity between residential and industrial areas and existing public transport networks to meet the city’s future mobility needs.

At a review meeting on projects under the Core Urban Region Economy (CURE), the Chief Minister asked officials to study the best PRT systems in the world and submit a report at the earliest. The proposed system should connect high-footfall locations and industrial employment centres with Metro Rail, MMTS and bus stations, he said.

Mr. Reddy stressed the need to give priority to advanced technology, careful selection of locations and efficient maintenance while designing the system. He asked officials to expedite the construction of flyovers and underpasses to improve connectivity between different parts of the CURE region and ensure smoother traffic movement.

Reviewing the road development works around KBR Park, the Chief Minister directed officials to improve traffic flow under the proposed one-way system, including at road junctions, free left turns and U-turns. He asked them to speed up the shifting of utilities to ensure that the works were completed without delay.

He also instructed officials to accelerate the construction of the flyover from Nagarjuna Circle towards Jubilee Check Post. Citing the pace of infrastructure works in cities such as Mumbai, he called for a study of the technologies and construction methods used there and directed that projects taken up should be completed within a year.

The Chief Minister further asked officials to examine the feasibility of constructing a radial road parallel to the proposed Hyderabad-Mumbai bullet train corridor. Opportunities to widen existing roads and build new ones between Shankarpally and Chevella should also be assessed, he said.

The meeting also reviewed the use of recycled water, with the Chief Minister directing officials to expedite projects and prepare a comprehensive assessment of demand and supply.

Officials informed him that plans had been drawn up for the utilisation of 500 million litres per day (MLD) of recycled water. Mr. Revanth Reddy asked them to facilitate its use by data centres at Bharat Future City, Chandanvelly and Aluru, besides other industries.

He also called for recycled water to be used in high-rise buildings, landscaped areas and parks, reducing dependence on fresh water for suitable non-potable purposes.

The meeting was attended by Chief Minister’s Secretary Manick Raj, Hyderabad Metro Rail Ltd. adviser N.V.S. Reddy, Additional Managing Director Ajith Reddy, municipal commissioners R.V. Karnan, Srujana and Vinay Krishna Reddy, and Water Board Managing Director Ashok Reddy, among others

The long wait for the Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) expansion has stretched further, with the Centre and the Telangana government deciding to have SBI Capital Markets (SBI Caps) to undertake a fresh valuation of Phase I and examine plans for an expanded network of up to seven corridors spanning 122 km for Phase II.

The move has raised more questions than answers. Notably, there is no clarity on the pending loan disbursal of ₹13,527 crore from the Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), despite an agreement being signed with the State government last month or timeline for SBI Caps to submit its report, point out informed sources.

Earlier reports indicated differences between the Ministry of Railways and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs over issuing a ‘No Objection Certificate’ (NOC), which appears to have stalled the loan. This comes even as the IRFC CEO had publicly stated that the corporation was encouraged to fund metro rail projects following its ‘Navratna’ status. He had maintained that HMR Phase I is ‘operationally profitable’ and that the proposed loan could reduce financing costs by about 40% to the government.

With officials concerned tight-lipped, there is no clarity on whether any conditions attached to the IRFC loan were overlooked by L&T or the State government at the time of signing the agreement. “It is also possible that prior approvals were not obtained or the appropriate authorities at the Centre were not kept in the loop, leading to the current situation”, said the sources, pleading anonymity.

While Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and Union Ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw (Railways), G. Kishan Reddy (Coal & Mines, and Manohar Lal Khattar (MoHUA) are understood to have agreed on a joint oversight mechanism involving officials from both the Centre and the State, there is no record of similar participation by central representatives in earlier efforts.

Previously, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Mr. Khattar had agreed to appoint two officials each to review HMR Phase I valuations carried out by public sector entities — IDBI Capital for financial assessment plus transaction advisor and DMRC International for technical evaluation of operational health. A committee of secretaries and later a cabinet sub-committee cleared the respective reports.

Based on these twin reports (not made public), the Telangana government and L&T had agreed on an equity contribution of about ₹1,462 crore and later, the IRFC loan was secured. Now, it remains unclear whether SBI Caps will revisit the entire exercise or build on earlier findings. The development also coincides with an ongoing legal dispute between the State government and SBI over the sale of a five-acre land parcel at Raidurg, said the sources.

Although Mr. Kishan Reddy facilitated discussions with his Cabinet colleagues to push the project forward, the HMR’s expansion now appears to be back at square one. HMR Phase II remains in limbo, as the State cannot form a joint venture with the Centre without first assuming control of Phase I from L&T with help of the proposed loan to ensure seamless integration between the two phases.

Telangana Government’s discussions with the Central Government on the Hyderabad Metro Rail takeover and expansion have ended productively.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has succeeded in convincing Union Ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and Manoharlal Khattar about the State government’s decision to take over the project and propose its expansion. The Chief Minister, who is camping in the national capital, has held discussions with Union Urban Affairs Minister Manoharlal Khattar on Tuesday (June 23, 2026) morning, with participation of Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy too.

Decision taken at the meeting

A decision was taken at the meeting to appoint a consultant for studying Metro phase-I valuation, selection of financial institution and mobilisation of loans for taking over the phase-I, phase-II expansion and other issues.

Further action based on consultant’s report

SBICAPS has been appointed as the consultant to conduct detailed study of the entire project and submit its report. The State and Central Governments would initiated future action based on the consultant’s report.

It was also agreed to nominate a senior official each from the State and Central Governments to cooperate with the consultant SBICAPS in ensuring expeditious study of the project and making recommendations. The Municipal Administration and Urban Development department Secretary has been nominated by the State Government to coordinate with the consultant.

Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy with Union Ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw, Manoharlal Khattar and G. Kishan Reddy in New Delhi on June 23, 2026
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BY ARRANGEMENT

HYDERABAD

Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy directly blamed the Union Coal Minister G. Kishan Reddy for stalling the release of funds from Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) for the second phase of Hyderabad Metro Rail while alleging that it was being done at the behest of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao and its working president K.T. Rama Rao.

At a press conference held at the State Secretariat in Hyderabad on Monday (June 15, 2026), the Chief Minister claimed he had the evidence to prove that Mr. Kishan Reddy had impressed upon the Union Ministers Manohar Lal Khattar and Ashwini Vaishnaw and the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to create hurdles when the State government had met all the conditions of the IRFC, and ₹1400 crores were to be released today (June 15, 2026).

“Why isn’t the Centre clearing funds for Hyderabad Metro second phase when it was clearing Metro Rail projects for much smaller cities like Ahmedabad, Visakhapatnam and others,” he sought to know. “I am directly blaming Mr. Kishan Reddy for his conspiracy and I have the evidence,” he said.

He urged Mr. Kishan Reddy to either facilitate the transfer of funds for the Metro Rail Phase-II or grant a No Objection Certificate (NOC) allowing the State to execute the project independently.

“The Centre must clarify whether it is willing to partner in the 122-km Metro Phase-II project or whether it will grant an NOC for Telangana to proceed independently. The people of Hyderabad deserve an answer,” the Chief Minister said. “You need not contribute your 50% share. Give us the NOC and we will bear the entire cost of Metro expansion,” he said.

Mr. Revanth Reddy reminded that the State government had to acquire the Metro Rail after L&T made it clear that it was not in a position to undertake Phase-II due to accumulated losses. Despite creating assets worth nearly ₹30,000 crore, the company informed us that it continues to incur annual losses of around ₹400 crore.

The State government’s acquisition of Phase-II was also to meet the Centre’s stipulation that the second phase be executed by the same agency that operated the first phase. He claimed that the State government had acquired Metro assets worth nearly ₹30,000 crore for about ₹15,000 crore.

The Chief Minister stated that L&T had raised loans of ₹13,600 crore at an interest rate of 8.25% and that the State government sought approval from the Centre to transfer those liabilities. Telangana had worked to secure lower-cost financing through the Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) and had arranged funding from a Japanese agency at an interest rate of around 4%.

The Chief Minister recalled that the Metro Rail project was originally conceived during the Congress regime and brought to Hyderabad under the leadership of former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and then Union Urban Development Minister S. Jaipal Reddy.

The target was to complete the project by 2017. However, he alleged that after the formation of Telangana, the project faced delays due to hurdles created by the previous BRS government, resulting in a three-year setback.

“The project, which was initially estimated at ₹15,000 crore, ultimately cost around ₹22,000 crore. Delays and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the executing company, L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad, into financial distress,” he said. He also alleged that despite being in power for a decade, the previous government failed to pursue Metro expansion.

Mr. Revanth Reddy reminded that much of the proposed Metro expansion would benefit areas represented by BJP MPs, including Kishan Reddy’s Secunderabad and Etala Rajender’s Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituencies. But Mr. Kishan Reddy was dancing to the tunes of KTR to stall the project in Hyderabad to continuously defame the Congress government, he alleged.

Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy speaking on Hyderabad Metro Rail expansion, at a press conference held at Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Telangana State Secretariat in the city on Monday (June 15, 2026)
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NAGARA GOPAL