Hyderabad: Chief Secretary of Telangana K Ramakrishna Rao has directed that the process of taking over Hyderabad Metro Rail from L&T be completed by the end of the current financial year.

Reviewing the status of the takeover in a high-level meeting on Tuesday with the committee of secretaries and officials from L&T, the Chief Secretary emphasised that the transfer must be carried out smoothly and expeditiously, in line with the agreement reached between both parties.

He clarified that the process should proceed without any hindrance to existing agreements and instructed that planned actions be taken systematically over the next 100 days.

The transaction advisor, IDBI, has been asked to finalise its report at the earliest to facilitate the completion of the takeover.

The Chief Secretary further stated that L&T must extend full cooperation in this process. Following the takeover, Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) Managing Director Sarfaraz Ahmad has been directed to prepare proposals related to operations and maintenance.

Advisor (Urban Transport) to the Government of Telangana NVS Reddy, Special Chief Secretary Vikas Raj, L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited MD KVB Reddy, officials from IDBI, Chief Electrical Engineer, HMRL DVS Raju and senior officers of HMRL attended the meeting.