The much-awaited skywalk at the Uppal junction has been opened to the public on Monday by Minister for Municipal Administration & Urban Development K.T. Rama Rao. The skywalk will give much-needed relief to pedestrians at one of the busiest junctions in the city.
The Minister also inaugurated a multipurpose convention centre at the Mini-Shilparamam near Uppal Bagayat layout on the same day.
The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has taken up the skywalk, which is the first such facility in the city and the State, at an estimated cost of ₹25 crore.
It connects six locations around the junction besides connecting with the Metro Rail station at the concourse level on both sides. The pedestrian facility, 660 metres long, is equipped with staircases and elevators at all the six hop stations.
The skywalk is one among the two pilots among the eight such structures planned at different junctions of the city. While the other skywalk at Mehdipatnam ran into trouble owing to Defence Ministry not parting with the required land, the one at Uppal has been finished without any hitch.
After the launch, Mr. Rama Rao made a round on the skywalk and viewed the photo exhibition and display of skywalk model organised atop the structure. He congratulated Special Chief Secretary Arvind Kumar and the engineering officials involved in the construction.
Later, Mr. Rama Rao addressed a public meeting and spoke about the achievements of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government in various sectors for the past nine years, and about the share of Uppal constituency in the development. He attributed the snail’s pace of the Ramantapur-Uppal elevated corridor to the laxity of the Central government.
