First Hyderabad metro train test run in Korea

The train is expected to reach the city in the third week of May

Hyundai-Rotem has rolled out the first train for Hyderabad Metro Rail project from its factory and it is expected to reach the city in the third week of May, according to a statement issued on Thursday.

L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited (LTMRHL), the concessionaire of the project, had awarded the Rs 1,800-crore rolling stock contract to the Korean manufacturer in September 2012. The company had shipped the first model coach in October last year.

The train was run on test track at the the company's Changwon factory in South Korea in the presence of LTMRHL chairman YM Deosthalee and chief executive and managing director VB Gadgil. L&T officials and representatives of Hyundai Rotem, Mitsubhishi Electric Corporation, Knorr-Bremse, Germany, and Hankuk Fibre, Korea, travelled in the train during the test run, it said.

"It is indeed a historic moment and we are proud to see the train coming to Hyderabad ahead of the scheduled date, which is a benchmark and a trendsetter," Deosthalee said in the statement.

Gadgil informed that the people of Hyderabad will have a glimpse of the train on tracks in June 2014. "HMR is a truly world class project and we are all committed to making it the best in India" he said. Commercial operations in the 8-km stretch between Nagole-Mettuguda viaduct will start from June this year. The project consists of three corridors with a total distance of over 73 km criss-crossing the city.