What Greater Hyderabad will mean to the city:
Hyderabad x 4! A concept is born, but views vary sharply about its liveability.
While the most vocal objections to Greater Hyderabad have come from the MIM, some Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders too have been making similar noises, albeit at lower decibel levels. TDP leader Teegala Devender Goud says it will be like merging with the sea. "People will have to travel 30-40 km to go to a civic office," he notes. Mayor T. Krishna Reddy, also of the TDP, says there will be a phenomenal increase in the tax burden. But party chief Naidu is yet to raise any serious objections. The BJP and the CPI(M) seem happy enough, though the latter points out that the government should not raise existing taxes for the next 10 years.
The TRS, earlier opposed to the very concept, now welcomes the move—it feels the development of Ranga Reddy, Mahbubnagar and Nalgonda augurs well for Telangana. TRS spokesperson and general secretary Veeramalla Prakash foresees greater employment potential and development of suburban areas. "Two years ago, we had opposed the move because the state had said Hyderabad doesn't come under the jurisdiction of the six-point formula aimed at the development of the Telangana region. But now the high court has clarified that Hyderabad falls under it," he maintains.
Owaisi, the government's strongest critic, feels the state is creating a monster in Greater Hyderabad, as it will be unviable administratively. "It's a case of acting in haste and repenting at leisure," he says, noting the MCH is currently unable to meet even the electricity costs of street lights. Owaisi also believes this move will inflame regional feelings, push up rental values in outskirts and jack up water, property tax, trading and licence fees. "It will also harm the local self-government concept by cutting short the term of gram panchayats."
Businessmen disagree. Mir Nasir Ali Khan of MAK Projects, a Hyderabad-based construction consultant, says the formation of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) will lead to standardisation of rules and regulations. "More banks will come forward to fund projects because of better infrastructure. It's also good news for the hotel and boutique hotel industry," he claims.
MCH commissioner Sanjay Jaju, Hyderabad's very own demolition man, says regulated growth is certain to happen. He dismisses talk of the GHMC ending up as a highly centralised administrative set-up. Post-expansion, the city corporation is likely to have four zones and a chief secretary-level officer as commissioner. There will be about 200 elected representatives.
Some see it as a political masterstroke on the CM's part to keep Hyderabad out of a possible Telangana state. The feeling in the Congress is that Greater Hyderabad's increased population and area can ensure it a Union territory status. Others see it as Rajasekhara Reddy's way of proving that he is all for urban development. Either way, Greater Hyderabad is headed for greater ambitions.