The state cabinet of Telangana approved the government's expansion plans for the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL), which are expected to cost a total of Rs 69,100 crore.

According to the proposal, the 72-km Phase-1 Metro and 31-km Airport Express Metro will each receive an additional 309 km of metro rail services over the course of the following three to five years. The same has already begun with its basic work.

Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister K T Rama Rao told reporters the expansion plan will take the coverage of metro rail to over 400 km and connect various corners of the city, with a target completion timeframe of three to five years.

At present, HMRL through its concessionaire L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited operates 67 km of Phase-1 metro across three corridors and has a daily ridership of over 5 lakh passengers a day. 

The works on a 5 km stretch to the Old City that was part of Phase-1 is yet to begin. As part of Phase-2 expansion, the government had proposed a 26 km corridor from BHEL to Lakdi-ka-pul, and a five-kilometre stretch to connect Nagole and LB Nagar metro stations.