COVID-19 lockdown increased pace of Telangana’s urban development

HYDERABAD: The Telangana Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) annual report for the year 2020-2021 was released on July 9. Citing that nearly half of Telangana’s population resides in urban areas, KT Rama Rao, Minister of MAUD, Government of Telangana, said that the development of urban local bodies continues to be the state government’s top priority.

During the pandemic, the Government of Telangana had taken up major infrastructure development works, including laying greenfield link roads, flyovers, and recarpeting of existing roads. The government had said that development works on roads during lockdown was able to go on for 12-16 hours per day due to absence of traffic. Rao praised the services of the frontline workers of MA & UD during the pandemic. Works which normally take at least nine months to a year, were completed in a record time of only two-four months during the lockdown phase.

The state government has also made a decision of constructing 15 new bridges across River Musi in the city. This long overdue project is expected to provide ease of travel and help commuters save time. Additionally, Strategic Nala Development Plan has been initiated to plan and execute proper drainage, surplus water flows in Hyderabad Urban Agglomerate in the monsoon season. Moreover, the state is planning to establish an Urban Centre of Excellence, which will be the hub of urban research, startups, training and conferences, and as a centre which will meaningfully address urban issues. 

The state also announced its plan of developing a greenfield township ‘Neopolis’ at Kokapet on the west side. With planned infrastructure, this new hub is expected to play a crucial role in coming years in Hyderabad’s growth. Telangana secured first rank in the nation for implementation of the PM SVANidhi programme. The state had sanctioned Rs 347 crore worth loans to around 3,47,006 street vendors.