KTR meets Rajnath Singh, seeks transfer of defence lands for Hyderabad’s development

KT Rama Rao on Friday raised concerns over the lack of support from the Central government to Telangana despite its rapid growth

Hyderabad: IT and Municipal Administration Minister KT Rama Rao on Friday raised concerns over the lack of support from the Central government to Telangana despite its rapid growth.

He urged the Centre to expedite the transfer of around 160 acres of defence lands to the State government to facilitate development of public infrastructure, in exchange for equally valuable lands outside the city.

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Rama Rao who is on a two-day visit to Delhi for taking up various pending projects pertaining to Telangana with the union Ministers, met union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and submitted representations on the proposed elevated corridors, skywalks and road expansion which require defence lands.

To decongest the traffic and streamline vehicular movement, the Minister emphasised the need for 94.2 acres defence land for the 18.4 km skyway project connecting Jubilee Bus Stand to Rajiv Rahadari (State Highway-1) and another 56 acres for the 18.35 km skyway from Patny to Kandlakoya.

He also sought around 6.3 acres defence land at Golconda (1.16 acres) and Ibrahimbagh (5.14 acres) for the development of link roads, apart from another half an acre for the development of a skywalk at Mehidipatnam Rythu Bazaar.

Further, the union Defence Minister was also requested to transfer small portions of defence land for the creation of link roads and road widening at locations like Kanchanbagh, the junction of Road No.1 and 12 at Banjara Hills, from Zohra Bee Dargah to Rakshapuram, from Mohammadi Lane to Andhra Flour Mill Road and from Andhra Flour Mill to Tippu Khan Bridge.

Speaking to the media on the occasion, Rama Rao underlined the rapid growth of Hyderabad which is responsible for creation of about 44 per cent of IT jobs in the country. Besides being a global hub for vaccine production, the city is making significant progress in pharmaceuticals, biotech and aero space sectors.

“Considering the growing prominence of Hyderabad, we have been seeking the union government’s support for improving infrastructure in the Telangana capital city. But they are yet to respond,” he reminded.

Rama Rao expressed disappointment at the Central government’s failure to provide assistance during the floods in Hyderabad in 2020. He said that he repeatedly gave representations to five Defence Ministers who served in the NDA government, including his meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to present the State’s demands.

“We have also sought to expedite excision of civil areas of Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) and its merger with Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, to develop public amenities including community halls,” he added. He hoped that the Defence Minister would take a favourable decision to the requests from the State government.

Further, the Minister revealed that proposals seeking financial assistance for the expansion of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project have been already submitted to the Central government in October last year which will be taken up with union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday.

A Detailed Project Report (DPR) was prepared and submitted to the Centre for the expansion of Metro lines between BHEL and Lakdikapool (via Serilingampally and Miyapur) for a length of 31 km and Nagole-LB Nagar for 5 km under phase-II expansion.

He will also seek financial assistance for the proposed metro corridor from Patancheru and Hayatnagar as well as complete the pending MMTS works. “We have already paid the State’s share for the MMTS project, but there has been no response from the union government,” he said.

Rama Rao is also likely to meet union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking his support and transfer of about 4-5 acres of Home Ministry’s land to the State government for the completion of the link road project near Rasoolpura junction. He said union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy failed to address the issue, he said.

Rama Rao also criticised the Central government for providing assistance to 10 metro rail projects in Uttar Pradesh while neglecting Hyderabad in Telangana. He pointed out the disparity in response, noting that help was extended during floods in Gujarat, but not to Hyderabad.

“Kishan Reddy must explain to the people of Telangana as to why the Centre did not cooperate when there were floods in Hyderabad when it could grant relief to Gujarat and other BJP states,” he demanded.

When asked if the Centre was delaying a decision on the alienation of defence lands due to political reasons, the Minister saw no other issues as there was no objection to the transfer of defence lands in Lucknow, Bengaluru, and Ahmedabad, for similar purposes.