Bifurcation won’t affect Metro Rail

• Number of passengers would double by the time the Metro Rail project is completed
• Talk of bifurcation impact seen as bid to mar the brand image of Hyderabad
• We will not run into losses, says L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad

Sudheer Goutham

Ever since the Centre announced the bifurcation of the State, there have been apprehensions in some circles about its impact on Metro Rail. Questions have been raised about the viability of the Metro Rail project in the wake of a division of the state, as there could be migration of people from the city to other regions. This, they say, could result in a fall in the total number of passengers projected by the authorities.

L&T, the concessionaires, has undertaken the project in PPP mode with an investment of 90 per cent of total expenditure. It expects 50 per cent of its returns to come from ticket fare collections and the rest from transit- oriented development, advertisements and renting of commercial space.

Still, the Metro Rail project authorities think differently. “By the time the project nears completion i.e. by 2017, the number of passengers is expected to double. Even if things are going to happen as expected, we are not going to run into losses,” said an official. Metro Rail would help ease traffic woes in most parts of the city and hence people were waiting for it, he said.

Experts believe that the talk of bifurcation impacting Metro Rail project would only cause unreasonable apprehensions among the people. It was an attempt to mar the brand image of Hyderabad, an official said.

Experts’ take on post-bifurcation scenario

• Urbanisation experts in the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) and other private bodies, including the Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries, are of the considered view that:
• Even if the constitution of separate state requires transfer of government employees, it would not cross 10,000
• The number could come down further if Hyderabad is declared as a joint capital for the next 10 years
• The chances of private employees leaving their jobs and migrating to other regions are very less
• The established giants in the IT sector, multinational companies, pharma majors and other private industries have declared that there is no necessity for them to change their base from Hyderabad to elsewhere. Even if new cities are developed in other parts of the state, these companies may branch out to the other regions without shifting their base
• Hyderabad has inherent capacity to grow as a global city due to its large parcels of land; therefore, businessmen prefer Hyderabad. And the city has favourable weather conditions for most part of the year.

Metro and passengers:

• The state government had estimated that by 2017 the number of passengers would reach 15 lakh every day; by 2024, it might touch 22 lakh
• The Metro Rail project was launched after years of study and research on population and traffic in the twin cities. Accordingly, three corridors of Metro Rail have been designed.
• Metro Rail services will benefit MNCs, corporate entities, industries and educational institutions
• The population in Greater Hyderabad would swell to 1.36 crore by 2021
• Over 30 lakh people in the city currently have private vehicles. By 2017, the number would rise, compounding traffic chaos given the very limited road infrastructure. Then people will prefer public transport.