Telanagana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is an unhappy man for his dream to squeeze out cash from the sale of prime land in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy district is turning out to be a mirage.

Following a directive of the state government and KCR to identify land to be auctioned to raise funds before the budget 2015, the administration of the Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy district found that of the 1,150 acre available for auctioning, only 9 acres were litigation free. Of buildings on 255 acres, only 900 acre are vacant. Rest of the land are embroiled in revenue and court disputes.

In its ad hoc budget for 2014-15, the Telangana government estimated that it could raise Rs 6000 Crore income by auctioning government lands in Hyderabad. But as the year is coming to an end the government is in a quandry as the revenue from sale of land is expected to fetch not more than Rs.350 Crore.

The government also has another 40 acres in the city which is stuck in legal disputes and cannot be sold right away.The Government is collecting this data to show the income expected from auctioning the lands in its next budget which will be tabled on March 11.

The government’s focus has thus shifted to properties in prime areas located in the heart of the city. However, there are no vacant government lands available in core areas of the city where there is huge demand. With this, the idea of shifting existing government offices located in prime areas of the city came up and the government sprung into action immediately. Thus was born the idea to sell away the Secretariat complex spread over 25 acres.

The KCR government plans to auction land and buildings of 23 offices in and around Jubilee Hills, Banjara Hills areas etc which could fetch around Rs 185 crores. Of the total 2.5-3 lakh acres of government land bank available within Telangana, those around the Greater Hyderabad limits are very few (hardly few hundred acres) and the government has not been successful is weeding out encroachments and litigation and make them industry ready.

It is also eyeing the land and  buildings of Collectorates of Hyderabad and RR district in Nampally and Lakdi ka pul. The government also hopes to raise hundreds of crores of rupees through sale of buildings and lands belonging to the collectorates of Hyderabad and RR in Nampally and Lakdi-kapul besides the complex of agriculture, State Museum building and others near the LB stadium.

The move of KCR has received brick bats from all over. The Congress and BJP see a larger conspiracy behind shifting of the secretariat and said it is aimed at satisfying the land mafia that is eyeing prime properties in the city.

Source: THI