Now they have no money for completing the remaining stretch to Faluknuma, nor do they seem to have funds for Phase 2,” he adds. “The state is already facing a financial crunch and L&T Metro has overspent on the metro construction by Rs 3,756 crore. Reports suggest the Telangana government has turned down L&T Metro’s request for aid but has instead offered to assist in procuring soft loans. “Now the operator is seeking compensation in the form of aid, this puts further strain on the state,” said Jafri. Presently, our prime focus is to continue operations adhering to safety norms," a spokesperson of the L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited told The Hans India at the time. Due to COVID-19, Hyderabad Metro Rail operations were suspended for about 170 days. “To overcome the huge financial burden on us, and for some respite, we are exploring different options with all related stakeholders. The Hyderabad Metro reportedly has cost overruns to the tune of Rs 16,000 crore. The year before, the company had reported a profit of Rs 16,344 crore and losses of Rs 149 crore. The loss has been attributed to the closure of the metro service for 170 days during the COVID-19 pandemic induced lockdowns. L&T Metro says that it suffered a net loss of Rs 382 crore from the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project in FY 2019-20. “The east side of the old city has access to the Hyderabad Metro at Malakpet metro station and also to the Multi-Modal Transport System (MMTS), but those who are on the west have to commute and spend more to reach the metro or the MMTS,” says Jafri. Syed Amin Ul Hasan Jafri, a Member of Legislative Council from AIMIM says the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project at the time of its planning did not carry out any public consultation with locals of the old city. And the people with perhaps the least access to the metro are from the predominantly Muslim, old city of Hyderabad.
However, some transport researchers argue that it provides little last-mile connectivity and doesn’t connect the parts of the city with larger population density. It’s a fully elevated, grey concrete structure that stands apart from the city landscape. In Hyderabad however, the metro rail stands out. In cities like Bengaluru and Chennai, parts of the metro run underground and blend into the city. It runs along the middle of the Old Mumbai Highway, dividing city blocks and communities. The Hyderabad Metro Rail, which was inaugurated in 2017, in its first phase covers a distance of 69.2 kilometres across three corridors, from Miyapur to LB Nagar, from Jubilee Bus Station (JBS) to MGBS and from Nagole to Raidurgam.
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