Hyderabad, Mar 4 (IANS): Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy will lay the foundation stone for the Hyderababd Old City Metro rail project on March 8.

Hyderabad Metro Rail Ltd (HMRL) Managing Director N.V.S. Reddy announced that the foundation stone will be laid at Falaknuma.

The Phase I Metro rail work in a 5.5 km stretch from Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (MGBS) to Falaknuma, and a part of corridor II (Green Line) Jubilee Bus Station (JBS) to Falaknuma was not taken up earlier.

After the formation of the new government, CM Revanth Reddy focused his attention on the Old City Metro and directed HMRL officials to take it up on high priority.

The MD indicated that the alignment will pass through Darulshifa, Purani Haveli, Etebarchowk, Alijakotla, Mir Momin Daira, Haribowli, Shalibanda, Shamsheergunj, Aliabad and end at Falaknuma Metro Rail station as originally planned.

There would be four stations, namely Salarjung Museum, Charminar, Shalibanda, and Falaknuma.

NVS Reddy said that though the alignment and the stations are about 500 metres away from the monuments, two of the stations are named after the Salarjung Museum and Charminar due to their historical importance.

Around 1,100 properties will be affected in road widening up to 100 feet as per the master plan and to 120 feet at the station locations. The project is expected to cost about Rs.2,000 crore including for road widening and shifting of the utilities, he said.

Engineering solutions are being worked out to ensure that no religious or heritage structure is affected in this stretch, either in road widening or in Metro Rail construction. The line will be further extended by another 1.5 km from Falaknuma to Chandrayangutta, which will be developed as a major interchange station on the newly-planned Airport line of Nagole-LB Nagar-Chandrayangutta-Mailardevpally-P7 Road-Shamshabad Airport, he added.