The Hindu 25.03.2010
HMDA waiting for the tide to turn
T. Lalith Singh
| Keeps its fingers crossed on several high-profile projects |
Little progress in bus terminus and business centre at old Gandhi Hospital site
Proposal for truck terminals/logistic hubs along eight identified corridors on hold
HYDERABAD: The curve of its financial status having gone down with the decline in real estate business in and around the city, the once happening Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) is now forced to wait for return of good times and keep its fingers crossed on several projects.
One such project happens to be the proposal to develop and construct a bus terminus and business centre at the old Gandhi Hospital site that was floated in July 2007. When real estate was a driving force, the idea was to develop the nine-acre site with three million sft accommodating a spacious parking facility, bus terminus and also an ultra modern business centre. The project cost for this was put at approximately at Rs.450 crore with completion period of 30 months then itself. However, there has been little progress since then with a cash-strapped HMDA with its meagre resources busying itself at focussing on finishing the works that were already taken up. Also on the hold is the proposal to develop truck terminals/logistic hubs along eight identified corridors around the city to provide parking facility for the inbound/outbound commercial heavy vehicles. The locations identified included a site near Manoharabad Railway Station towards north of the city, along Thimmapur Railway Station in the south and Adulabad with connectivity to Ghatkesar Railway Station and ORR in the city east. A proposal announced pertained to a road overbridge at Sanjeevaiah Park. to be taken up by the HMDA in association with GHMC, the almost Rs.25-crore facility was promised as one that would ease the traffic congestion at existing ROBs of Begumpet, Khairatabad and Tank Bund. However, not much has happened about it after the plan was unveiled. The list of proposals includes an underwater aquarium at Mir Alam Tank suggested as one that would draw national and international tourists.
However, the biggest challenge happens to be a central office building to house its own operations. A site of about 8.5 acres was earmarked for the purpose at the NAC premises near Hitech City and though conceptual designs submitted by Yasher Architects of Israel were approved in November 2008, the work is just waiting to take off.
