BRS vows to scrap the ‘illegal’ project on returning to power

Hyderabad: The State government is betting big on its ambitious Fourth City project but the main opposition BRS is strictly against any such move and announced that it would scrap the project, once it returns to power in the State.

Party leaders point out that the place earmarked for the project was originally meant for Pharma City, for which the Union Ministry of Environment had granted specific approval for the purpose.

BRSLP Deputy Leader T Harish Rao said that as soon as the BRS government comes to power, “we will dump the ‘Future City’ project”. He said that there is a Parliamentary Act stipulating that if there is a deviation from the original purpose, the farmers’ lands must be returned to them.

The BRS leader alleged that the Revanth Reddy government was merely engaging in theatrics. When a case regarding this came up before the High Court recently, the state government informed the Court that they were, in fact, continuing with the Pharma City Project.

The government is simply playing gimmicks, he said, while adding that their strategy was to try to introduce supplementary facilities such as education and housing alongside the Pharma City project. This was meant to ensure that 75 per cent of the area is dedicated to Pharma City, while the remaining 25 per cent is allocated for other purposes.

However, in reality, they were manoeuvring the situation so that 75 per cent of the land is utilised for other commercial ventures, with only 25 per cent actually dedicated to the pharmaceutical sector, said Harish Rao, adding that this was ‘illegal.’

He further said that the Congress party, under the guise of the ‘Future City,’ was essentially running a real estate business.

“Once we assume office, we will shelve the ‘Future City’ project and restore the original Pharma City project. This is not merely my personal assertion. It is mandated by an Act of Parliament. We initiated the Pharma City project with the vision that it would generate employment opportunities for thousands of people. We took measures to ensure that not a single pharmaceutical company would be compelled to leave our state. Two and a half years have already elapsed. The final year will be dominated by election-related activities. The Revanth government has accomplished absolutely nothing,” said Rao.

The former minister alleged that the Congress government has devised a plan to distribute the lands with the ulterior motive of securing some form of backdoor benefits. They acted in this manner because they feared that if the Pharma City is developed successfully, the BRS party would get the accolades. No matter what they attempt to do, it will not succeed; it will not stand the test of time, he said. “That site is for Pharma City and it is coming,” Harish Rao said.