Congress turns to land monetisation as revenue pressures mount

Facing fiscal constraints and slowing growth in traditional revenue sources, the Telangana government is intensifying land monetisation, land pooling and urban development initiatives. Authorities are identifying additional land parcels for auction and prioritising projects such as HILT to mobilise resources

Hyderabad: Facing mounting fiscal pressures and limited scope for expanding conventional revenue streams, the Congress government has intensified its focus on land and asset monetisation, land pooling and large-scale urban development projects as key instruments for resource mobilisation. The government, which auctioned, transferred, leased and mortgaged nearly 20,000 acres over the last 30 months, is said to be gearing up to auction and transfer another 5,000 acres in the next few months.

After exhausting several other avenues for boosting revenues, the Cabinet Sub-Committee on Revenue Mobilisation, chaired by Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, recently instructed officials to prioritise monetisation of public assets and lands. Accordingly, the government is set to accelerate land pooling projects under the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), identify new government land parcels for monetisation and fast-track the Hyderabad Infrastructure and Land Transformation (HILT) project.

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The renewed emphasis comes at a time when tax revenues are showing signs of saturation despite improvements in compliance and collection efficiency. Officials acknowledged that sluggish economic activity, limited money circulation in the market and constraints in expanding traditional revenue sources such as GST, excise and registrations have narrowed the government’s options.

The success of the Uppal Bhagayat land pooling initiative has emerged as a template for future projects. The Telangana Government Industrial Infrastructure Corporation’s auction of premium parcels at Raidurg in May fetched nearly Rs 237 crore per acre, setting a record for South India and reinforcing confidence in land-based revenue mobilisation within the government, despite poor revenue from the Stamps and Registrations Department.

Similar exercises in Mokila and Budwel are already underway, while three additional projects are under evaluation. The government has now directed authorities to identify more land parcels within and around Hyderabad that can be brought under land pooling and monetisation programmes.

Apart from land auctions, the government has placed special emphasis on the HILT project, which aims to unlock the economic potential of large urban land parcels through infrastructure-led development. The project aims to sell industrial lands to various companies that have so far been functioning on a land lease basis. The authorities were also asked to explore the possibility of long-term leasing of public assets.

However, revenue from stamps and registrations has remained below projections over the past two financial years. Over the last two years, the State government realised around 47 per cent and 79 per cent of its targets from Stamps and Registrations in 2024-25 and 2025-26, respectively. Compared to 2023-24, the State recorded an increase of less than Rs 1,000 crore in 2025-26.