After saying no sale of government land, Congress puts up 400 acres for auction

TGIIC invites agencies to provide assistance for auction of land proposed to be developed at Kancha Gachibowli in Serilingampally

Hyderabad: It did not take too long for what the BRS said in December to be proven true. The Congress government, which had vehemently denied in the Assembly that it was attempting to sell government land in the capital region, has now put up 400 acres at Kancha Gachibowli in Serilingampally mandal for auction through the Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC).

As per estimates by realtors, the value per acre at Kancha Gachibowli is about Rs 80 crore, which means the cash-strapped State government is looking at big money.

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The TGIIC has already invited agencies to serve as transaction advisor for optimisation of a master plan and to provide assistance for auction of land proposed to be developed at Kancha Gachibowli. In a Request for Proposal issued on February 28, with the last date of March 15, the corporation has proposed to prepare “international standard sustainable” master plan layout for its land measuring 400 acres at Survey No.25 (P) of Kancha Gachibowli in Serilingampally mandal, for “developing and auctioning” in a phased manner to prospective buyers for monetisation purposes.

The property, it says, is in an established IT/ITES and residential hub located towards the west of Hyderabad, seven to eight km from Cyber Towers, 15-18 km from Punjagutta, 22 km from Secunderabad Railway Station and 33 from the international airport.

The agencies are supposed to ascertain the permitted land use of the site and determine the potential considering different factors, including height restrictions due airport funnel, FSI, proposed civic and transport infrastructure etc. They are also supposed to study the possible catalysts and impediments for undertaking real estate development at the land. The consultant agencies are also supposed to advise TGIIC on changes or alterations, if any, required in the existing byelaws or regulations which will enhance the development potential and subsequently the project monetisation.

Furthermore, the conceptual master plan should propose various components that can be set up at the project site through a land use zoning plan. The proposed components of land development include commercial, residential and public parks, including walkways, cycling trails, heritage and culture-based eco-parks. The agencies should assist in marketing and auction of developed land in five phases, including valuation of land parcels, preparation of information memorandum and documents and project marketing and bid process management.

Now back to the Congress volte face. The BRS had exposed these plans in December last year itself, with former Minister T Harish Rao displaying GO Ms 54 issued on June 26, 2024 in the Assembly.

Countering the State government’s claims that government lands were not being sold, the former Minister had pointed out that the government was indeed planning to raise funds through mortgage and had alienated 400 acres of government land at Serilingampally in favour of TGIIC. These 400 acres were worth about Rs 30,000 crore, he had said, adding that this was done on payment of market value of Rs 75 crore per acre.

However, Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy had vociferously denied this, claiming that it was just “transfer of land” from Revenue to TGIIC.

However, with the TGIIC’s request for proposal clearly mentioning that the plan was to auction the land to prospective buyers, the lies of the Congress have once again been exposed.