Urban News

The Hindu 24.12.2009

HMDA facing fund crunch

T. Lalith Singh

HYDERABAD: As senior IAS officer B.P. Acharya prepares to take over the reins of Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), awaiting him are near empty coffers of the body that is supposed to shape the contours of an emerging city and a host of projects that are stuck in various stages.

The financial status of the HMDA has gone into a crisis with some officials even going to the extent of expressing worries on whether the salary bills of the staff could be handled if the situation does not improve at the earliest. Bills have been pending for different projects, some prestigious ones, and concern is obvious as to how to settle the payments of the rest of the work on P.V. Narasimha Rao Elevated Expressway.

Then there is the flyover at Madhapur and huge funds to be raised for the ambitious Outer Ring Road (ORR), which when completed promises to do away with travel travails apart from boosting development all around the city.

The HMDA, which had everything going its way when the real estate boomed and came up with a host of projects, is now caught in a piquant situation not knowing what to do with its plans. Several tenders were floated and developers invited but most of the initiatives failed to evoke any enthusiasm so far.

If the idea of truck terminals dotting the city outskirts remained on paper, so have the concepts of a multi-storied business complex on the old Gandhi Hospital premises in Secunderabad and an aquarium of international standards at Miralam Tank. Both failed to spur interest among developers and make them put their money particularly in the backdrop of the economic slowdown.

Nothing much has moved on the Road Over Bridge (RoB) proposed at Sanjeevaiah Park and the auction of sites attempted at different locations in and around the city too failed to bring the much desired money into the coffers.

Such is the scenario that the authority, which is operating from different locations, is yet to initiate work on its own central office complex at Madhapur.

No takers

The HMDA had decided to increase its land bank and sought identified sites at different emerging locations around the city but the same is yet to materialise. Also, the efforts to raise money from financial institutions and preparedness to mortgage from its available land bank did not help it so far.

Indian Express 22.12.2009

BMC plans move against Pure Drinks for ‘illegal’ occupation of prime plot

Alleging illegal occupation of a prime plot of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation in Worli by Pure Drinks Private Limited and using it for construction of multi-storeyed towers, the civic administration has once again proposed cancellation of the lease agreement.

The proposal has been on hold for 18 years and the civic improvement committee is expected to take a decision on Tuesday. The 1.5 lakh sq feet prime plot in Worli was leased to Pure Drinks—which produced popular soft drink Campa Cola—on January 17,1972 for a nominal rent of Re 1. The lease was reserved for offices, film studio, laboratory, storerooms, shops, and staff quarters. However, the lessee had allegedly misused it on a number of occasions, say the BMC officials.

The civic officials said that over the years even after shutting the Campa Cola factory, the lease agreement was misused and violated for sub-dividing the land. A five feet high wall and five multi-storeyed towers have been constructed without Occupation Certificate from Building Proposal Department and NOC from estate department. The proposal also claims that while quarters were to be constructed for staff, flats in the multi-storeyed building have been sold to outsiders

Pure Drinks in a letter to the civic administration in 1990 had denied the charges and challenged the cancellation of the lease. The BMC had recommended cancellation of lease and the proposal is pending since 1992, it has already forfeited Rs 9.29 lakh as provident fund of employees of the company.

The committee members after visiting the spot said the lease agreement is grossly violated. “The structure which previously housed the factory now has a board of Krushna developers claiming the property. How can a private builder stake claim on BMC land and who has given them the permission?” said committee member Manoj Kotak. Civic officials have also found encroachment by “outsiders’ who are residing on the premises and illegal construction.

No five star hotel in place of Kismat cinema
Members of the Improvement Committee have opposed the change of land reservation of a Marathi cinema house to a five star hotel in Prabhadevi. India Land Group had proposed a 65-storeyed five star hotel and has sought the BMC's permission to allow change of land reservation from cinema house to a hotel. Stating that the widely populated Mahrashtrian locality does not have a single Marathi cinema theatre, members said the land reservation should not be changed. "Also the area has a lot of traffic congestion and allowing a five star hotel opposite Siddhi Vinayak Temple would only worsen the situation,'' said a member. The committee members suggested that a new Marathi cinema house should be erected in place of Kismat cinema