On the Lines of Future City… Focus on civic bodies

‘Poor drainage facilities, lack of sanitation, inadequate drinking water supply network and poor road network are some of the perennial problems being faced by new municipal corporations and most municipalities’

Hyderabad: After envisaging plans to develop the ‘Fourth City’ around Greater Hyderabad limits, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy is ready to spruce up all municipal corporations and selected municipalities to provide a better living conditions and develop them as future investment hubs.

The Chief Minister, who also holds the Municipal Administration and Urban Development portfolio, was planning to make his own mark in the functioning of the urban local bodies in the state. The previous BRS government has increased the number of municipalities to 129 and the total number of municipal corporations is 13. Most of the municipal bodies were yet to have a master plan for the integrated development of the urban local bodies.

Top sources said that a study was being done to ascertain the development of the newly constituted municipalities and the status of civic infrastructure which is being provided in each urban body.

The Municipal Administration wing was preparing a detailed report to analyse the progress of all municipalities and the municipal corporations which have been established outside Greater Hyderabad. The five new municipal corporations – Khammam, Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Warangal and Ramagundam have been facing many challenges to grow as the developed local bodies. “Poor drainage facility, lack of sanitation, inadequate drinking water supply network and poor road network are the perennial problems faced by the municipal corporations and also a majority of the municipalities,” official sources said, adding that the CM wanted to address every problem which is being faced by the dwellers in every municipality and municipal corporation despite spending huge funds in the previous government. All the municipal corporations (outside the GHMC) have a unique feature with the availability of local resources and they have potential to grow fast. The MA&UD department was finding out the potential growth indicators in every municipal corporation and in selected municipalities and finalising the plans to develop them as investment hubs as well as revenue generating centers.

The Chief Minister will call a meeting with the officials of all municipal bodies soon after the MA&UD department completes the status report. “The Chief Minister is ready to spend adequate funds to promote each municipality as a hub of economic activity on the line of GHMC and the upcoming Fourth city and promote Telangana, a fast developed urban state in the country in a time bound manner,” an official said.