Hyderabad Metro Rail trial run by end of month

Source: Timesof India Dt: Jun 13, 2014

HYDERABAD: The first Hyderabad Metro Rail train is likely to chug in for a mandatory trial run along an 8-km stretch between Nagole and Mettuguda by the end of this month. The service is scheduled to be thrown open to the public in March 2015, in what is being billed as an Ugadi gift.

Sources in the department of municipal administration and urban development said Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, who is directly monitoring the progress of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project, is expected to launch the trial run in the first stage of the project, which includes three corridors (Miyapur-LB Nagar, JBS-Falaknuma, and Nagole- Shilparamam) covering 71.08 km.

"At present, electrification of the track is being done and it is expected to be completed in a couple of days. Once it is done, the date for the trial run would be fixed," said a department official. According to him, since the work is progressing fast, seven Metro stations on the stretch — Nagole, Uppal, NGRI, Habsiguda, Tarnaka, Lalaguda and Mettuguda — will be operational in a month's time.

The trial run is mandatory as per the safety certification norms and the train has to run for at least 2000 km before the certification process. The Commissioner for Railway Safety (CRS), which works under the ministry of civil aviation, and Research Design & Standards Organisation (RDSO), which belongs to the ministry of railways, would conduct a safety audit of the project. While CRS officials would inspect the tracks and train for safety and speed norms, RDSO officials will check for compliance with design, standards and specifications.

The first engine and bogies arrived last month and are being subjected to static tests, including the functioning of electro-mechanical equipment and software inside the train. "Once the static test is done, we will put the train on the test track within Uppal depot before taking up the trial run between Nagole and Mettuguda," said a technical staff member. The officials said the safety certification process was expected to be completed by this December, following which the first phase would be ready for the public in March.

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Water Board Prepares Draft Proposals for ITIR

: With Telangana government deciding to give top priority to the Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR) in Hyderabad which will become economic backbone of Telangana, Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS &SB) has prepared draft proposals for water and sewerage system for the upcoming ITIR project.

The estimated daily water demand required for the ITIR area would be around 452 million litres per day (MLD). For dealing with 359 MLD sewerage and sullage generation, sewerage treatment plant and  sullage treatment plants have been proposed.

ITIR is a self-contained integrated knowledge clusters for growth of IT and electronic hardware manufacturing in 49,9120 acres in and around Hyderabad.

Under the mega project, special economic zones (SEZs), industrial parks, free trade zones, warehousing zones and export-oriented units would come up five Zone I-Cyberabad and surrounding areas in 86.7 sq.km, Zone II-Shamshabad International airport and Maheshwaram 79.2 sq.km, Zone III-Uppal and Pocharam 10.3 sq.km, Zone IV-ORR Connector from Cyberabad to Shamshabad International Airport area 11.5 sq.km, ORR connector from Shamshabad International Airport area to Uppal, Pocharam-14.3 sq.km, all totaling 202 sq.km.

The water board officials told Express that the estimated daily water demand  required for the ITIR area would be around 452 MLD, of which 195 MLD is potable water and the remaining 257 MLD is non-potable water. The requirement of potable water will be serviced from the storage reservoirs and the non-potable water through recycling.

The sites for elevated level surface reservoirs (ELSRs) have been suggested at Hardware Park, Hitech city, Pocharam/Uppal Industrial area, Mankhal, Shamshabad, Nadergul and at the central squares of the respective sector clusters in Shamshabad International Airport area. A major service reservoir has been planned at Mangalpally, Nagarjunasagar Highway and Sardarnagar.

Underground sumps along with overhead tanks, ELSRs and water treatment plants would be planned at strategic points for efficient water supply and drinking water would be connected with this pumping system with adequate pipelines. Water balancing will be done taking into consideration potable and non-potable water requirement and availability of treated water, they added.

A water pumping station is also planned for pumping clear water from the underground tank to respective overhead tanks. ELSRs would be proposed to cater to the entire ITIR and the size being in proportionate with the demand.  

A gridiron system of pipe network is recommended for the proposed water distribution network.

Within the gridiron system of pipe network, all primary and secondary mains will be looped and interconnected.

Sewerage System: As the sewerage and sullage discharge would be around 359 MLD,  sewerage treatment and sullage treatment plants, domestic sewerage network, sullage network and sewage pumping stations were proposed at the Raviral Cheruvu and central squares of the sector clusters, and near Mangalpally at Nagarjunasagar Highway.

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Telangana government to make Hyderabad a Wi-Fi enabled city

Source: Tech2 Dt:June 11, 2014

Free WiFi to be implemented on Wipro staff buses. Image used for representational purposes only. (Image credit: Reuters)

The Telangana government Tuesday said several firms were coming forward to provide 4-G technology for making the entire Hyderabad a Wi-Fi enabled city.

 

Officials have been asked to draft a master plan by engaging international consultants and involving Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority, Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board, Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation, revenue, electricity, Hyderabad Metro Rail and sports departments, said a government statement.

 

Minister for Information Technology K. Taraka Rama Rao mooted an institute of innovation for training engineering students to compete with global standards.

 

He also suggested a separate authority for the Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR) project for creating a hub for electronic hardware manufacturing units.

 

Harpreet Singh, secretary of the information technology and communications department, has informed Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao that 90 percent of the turnover of the IT sector was coming from Hyderabad, with a total turnover of Rs.62,293 crore.

 

Hyderabad is the second largest IT exporter in the country. He said there was a lot scope for further development of software and hardware technology sectors in Hyderabad.

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Draft township policy to be brought out of cold storage

Source : Times of India, June 8, 2014

 With the new dispensation in Telangana harping on satellite townships, officials are now busy clearing dust from the files created earlier on similar proposals. 

IT and panchayat raj minister K Taraka Rama Rao on Friday announced that the government would develop integrated satellite townships around Hyderabad apart from improving the image of 'Brand Hyderabad'. In fact, several studies had been conducted earlier and even a draft policy prepared on townships, but no concrete steps were taken by successive governments to realizing the same. This was mainly due to a slump in real estate for the past few years as townships have to be taken up by private infrastructure companies. 

Official sources said a draft township policy was prepared in 2008 by the municipal administration and urban development department, but it was shelved due to lack of growth in the real estate sector. Later, some changes like non-agriculture conversion charge waiver were made and the revised draft submitted to the state government a year ago. The government then constituted a high-level committee, comprising then municipal administration minister M Maheedhar Reddy, housing minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy, panchayat raj minister K Jana Reddy and revenue minister N Raghuveera Reddy, to look into the policy. 

As per the draft proposal, a township should have a minimum 100 acres in the HMDA limits. Integrated townships should have land specifically allocated for work spaces, recreation and residences. Private infrastructure firms, which were to take up the townships, would be encouraged with tax incentives like waiver of development charges, conversion charges and reduction in property tax. 

"If the government seeks the report on integrated township policy, the MA&UD department is ready to come up with the policy by incorporating changes as per the TRS government's policies and guidelines," an additional director of the MA&UD department said. 

Apart from the draft policy, officials said the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has taken up a study to develop transit oriented growth centres (TOGCs) at 13 locations to meet the travel demand, population and economic activities by 2041. The TOGCs have been proposed at locations like Shamshabad/Thimmapur, Patancheru, Gundla Pochampally, Shameerpet, Gachibowli, Ghatkesar, Tellapur/Nagulapalli, Tukkuguda, Keesara, Pedda Amberpet, Gowdavelli, Adibatla and Bonguluru. The authority had even engaged consultants to carry out feasibility study for 13 TOGCs and prepare the concept plans and urban designs using remote sensing and GIS techniques. 

"In the recently approved master plan for Hyderabad Metropolitan Region, the HMDA has identified 13 urban nodes like Bhongiri, Sangareddy, Choutuppal and 46 urban centres like Pochampally and Turkapally mainly to expand development in surrounding areas by creating economic activity and employment that would help in triggering balanced and sustainable development," a senior planning official of the HMDA said. For urban nodes and centres also, the development authority has appointed consultants for preparation of feasibility report and preparation of development plans.

 

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Free bicycles at all metro rail stations

Source: The Hindu  June 5, 2014

Commuters at the city’s Metro Stations would be issued bicycles free of cost, Hyderabad Metro Rail Managing Director N.V.S. Reddy said on Wednesday. A drive has already been initiated in schools across the twin cities urging children to cycle to school, he said.

It was Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao’s vision that the cities be designed for people and not cars, Mr. Reddy told a press conference.

Hyderabad Bicycling Club chairman D.V. Manohar claimed that about 5,200 had gotten themselves enrolled to the club. This was the second highest membership in the world. An online membership drive had begun to enrol new members in the HBC.

“After the first bike station came up near Sanjeevaiah Park, cycling communities have become active in Gachibowli too,” Mr. Manohar said, calling for a change for active mobility in the country’s commuting culture. The HBC chairman announced that he had been elected to the steering board of the World Cycling Alliance.

“To change the perception of cycling being the poor man’s vehicle to becoming the preferred mode of transport is a challenge. India is burdened by a 1.2 billion population from which the influx to the cities is expected to touch 250 million, the equivalent of 11 Australias,” Mr. Manohar observed.

The benefits

Cycling would not only be of physical benefit to the individual, but also reduce pollution in cities. Moreover, it would also lower the country’s oil import bill, he pointed out. HBC general secretary T. Satyanarayana Reddy, two-time Asian paracycling medalist Aditya Mehta and others were also present.

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No more bandhs and agitations, says Telangana IT Minister K T Rama Rao

Source: DC June 5,2014

Hyderabad: The IT minister of Telangana, Mr K.T. Rama Rao, says that agitations and bandhs are things of the past, and that as the party running the government, the TRS will not call any more bandhs, even over the Polavaram issue.

The minister says that  although Hyderabad has lost some of its sheen due to agitations, it will now have an enhanced cosmopolitan feel and Chandrababu Naidu will be no threat to the IT industry of Telangana.

Excerpts from the interview:

The industry has seen repeated bandhs over the Telangana issue, which has led to a sense of apprehension. What can you assure industry as well as the IT professionals from across the country and Seemandhra working here?

The agitations were for a specific purpose, which has been achieved. Therefore there is no need for any apprehensions. It is a sad thing but in this country there is no other way to register a protest. It was the leadership in Delhi that delayed the decision for so long, and sadly a decision was taken only after so many people lost their lives.
We have promised the people of Telangana that we will improve their lives, and we will now deliver on the promises.

The political issues will remain as there are no two southern states, which do not have disputes over the sharing of water. The bandh call for Polavaram was technically before the government was formed. We are serious about the two lakh tribals in the Polavaram-affected villages, and now we will fight it out in the SC. I can assure that there will be no political witch-hunt, absolutely no political vendetta.

Mr Chandrababu Naidu is expected to bring about a IT revolution in AP. How do you plan to compete?
Investors will remain in Hyderabad as long as it is profitable for them. I plan to build on and enhance the brand image of Hyderabad. No businessman will go away from Hyderabad over regional affiliations. While Hyderabad belongs to Telangana, it also belongs to the entire country, and it will retain its cosmopolitan feel, and we will enhance it further.

After the past few years of apprehensions in the IT sector, I will focus on bringing the sector back on track. Whoever has already invested in Hyderabad, we want them to stay and also expand, and we want to attract more investments. Andhra Pradesh can grow but Hyderabad will not lose its edge. The ITIR project will take Hyderabad to the next level of growth.

What challenges are you are expecting?
One of the biggest challenges will be to develop the other parts of the state and the power shortage is a big challenge. The challenge would be to concentrate on developing the remaining half of the state (apart from extended Hyderabad), which is rich in resources. We need more power to increase irrigation potential. The challenge is not only to spur the growth of different sectors in the remaining part of the state but also structure Hyderabad to have equitable growth.

What are the positives you hope to bank on?
While many have been saying that Hyderabad has low real estate rates, I see it as a huge advantage. For any company that wants to set up an office here, the low cost of real estate can be a big attraction. Also housing is cheaper here. If we take Bengaluru and Chennai,  Hyderabad has a clear advantage.

While Bengaluru has only one-third the infrastructure of Hyderabad, the real estate is three times costlier. In Chennai again, the infrastructure is again one third of Hyderabad while the real estate cost is double. In addition to this all the incentives that were available earlier will be retained by the new government.

What are your plans to expand the IT industry in Hyderabad, bringing in new companies and developing clusters across the state?
The current IT corridor, which extends from Gachibowli up to Adibatla, is where the ITIR (Information Technology Investment Region) is coming up. For developing IT our focus will be on the ITIR. ITIR will take Hyderabad to the next level of growth, and we want to expedite it. This will result in a huge jump in employment.

For the remaining five districts of the state, which are not covered by extended Hyderabad, the idea is to develop other industries that will provide employment to people there, and keep them from migrating to Hyderabad. We have to improve power supply and irrigation in other districts, and must also exploit our resources.

What new facilities are you planning?
The growth spurt that was expected from the ORR (Outer Ring Road) has unfortunately not come. Therefore we are planning Regional Ring Roads connecting the main city through radial roads across the ORR. While we have the IT corridor from Gachibowli up to Adibatla, the growth is lopsided along the ORR.

We plan to develop a Pharma Park, which will provide infrastructure for Pharmaceutical companies; an education park bringing in education and research institutions; a leisure and amusement park, and a Sports City for multiple sports academies.
Also since the entire development now is towards the west side creating new hubs along ORR will help growth.

How do you plan to address the mounting security concerns in the IT corridor and the rest of the city?
We are planning to enhance security in the IT corridor as well as the city. We need 3,000 cameras in Cyberabad alone while another 7,000 cameras are needed for the rest of the city. We have only 315 cameras now, and the plan is to increase their number. I want information technology companies to sponsor them as part of their CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) so that the city’s security cover improves.

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Hyderabad, tale of a city shared by two states

IBN Live  June 2, 2014

The city of Nizams and Pearls is not a newly built city like Chandigarh, which is a joint capital for both Punjab and Haryana. It is not even located on the border of two states. Hyderabad has been the capital of Hyderabad state and an integral part of the newly created state of Telangana. Hyderabad has a history of over 500 years. It was the richest city under the Nizams.

It is quiet natural that the people Telangana demand that Hyderabad was and will remain the capital of their state and the Andhra Pradesh has no right over it.

The Telangana Bill passed by the Parliament has declared Hyderabad common capital of both the states for a period not exceeding 10 years. The Telangana people have reluctantly agreed to it.

The administrative control over Hyderabad will be with the Governor of Telangana till Andhra Pradesh government shifts to its own capital.

The Bill says, "the Governor shall have special responsibility to the security of life, liberty and property of all those who reside in the common capital of Hyderabad. The Governor's responsibility shall extend to matters such as law and order, internal security and safety of all vital installations in the discharge of these functions. This transitory provision shall cease to be have effect after such period not exceeding 10 years."

On and from the appointed day, Hyderabad in the existing State of Andhra Pradesh, shall be the common capital of the State of Telangana and the State of Andhra Pradesh for such period not exceeding ten years. Hyderabad to be common capital for States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

After expiry of the period referred to in sub-section (1), Hyderabad shall be the capital of the State of Telangana and there shall be a new capital for the State of Andhra Pradesh. Explanation - In this Part, the common capital includes the existing area notified as the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation under the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act, 1955.

Some Constitutional experts argue that it is a flawed decision by the Parliament and it can be over turned by the Supreme Court. Because, the Constitution makes it clear that a Governor can administer a city only if it is a Union Territory. Since Hyderabad is a part of Telangana and it has an elected government, the decision to entrust the administration to governor is wrong.

The matter is already being heard by the Supreme Court and the hearing will continue in August.

Anticipating this, the Union Law minister in the previous government Kapil Sibal told both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha that the next government can rectify it by amending the Constitution, if the need arises.

It leaves the question over the Constitutional status of Hyderabad open to judicial scrutiny.

Hyderabad had been a rich provincial city till the late 1990s. The Information Technology and bio-technology boom hit the city and it changed the face of the city. People started talking more about Cyberabad and its glitzy towers than its famous Char Minar or Hussain Sagar.

The people from all over India have migrated to Hyderabad looking for jobs and new opportunities. The contribution of the risk taking and visionary entrepreneurs from Seemandhra in building Hyderabad and its surrounding areas is also huge. But, everything they built now belongs to Telangana and AP will have to build its new capital from the scratches.

The TRS chief and the first Chief Minister of Telangana K Chandrashekhara Rao has started his administration on a conciliatory note and wants the business community to stay back in Hyderabad and rest of Telangana.

Hyderabad may witness some dull moments and a sluggish growth because some investment is likely to move to Andhra Pradesh and its to be built Capital. The real estate has already collapsed in Hyderabad. But, the IT and Bio-Technology Companies are unlikely to shift base from Hyderabad, which is has got good infrastructure.

Since Hyderabad is a very well developed city, the KCR government does not need to do anything for its development once it comes under Telangana Government's control.

Will Hyderabad continue to grow and retain its place in the future? Only the time will tell.

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