Ever since the Telangana issue has cropped up, the capital city of Hyderabad had been the bone of contention. Now that the Congress Working Committee has decided to bifurcate the State, the ideas of making Hyderabad a Union Territory or a separate state or for that matter making it a permanent joint capital of Andhra and Telangana, has not gone down well with the local entrepreneurs and industry captains.
Whether Hyderabad is made a UT or a separate State housing the capitals of both the proposed states, the development model will remain unchanged. “The focus will once again remain the same and the development will be Hyderabad-centric. The equitable growth or inclusive growth in the real sense will take a backseat. Regions such as Vijayawada and Guntur will have to wait for the spill-over effect,” said the CEO of Better Castings and member of CII core team J.S.R.K. Prasad. Acquiescing with Mr. Prasad, the Andhra Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) secretary Prasad R Chukkapalli, said, many other practical problems will be associated with, if Hyderabad is made UT or joint capital for both the states. “At the outset we welcome the idea of an integrated State. But if it is to be divided then the capital city should be located in some other place and not Hyderabad, as the transaction cost and compliance cost will hit the industrialists from Andhra. For goods to reach our own capital city (Hyderabad in case) the trucks will have to pass through another state. We will be subjected to double taxation. The taxation and revenue sharing will be a major problem apart from the factor of Hyderabad-centric development,” said Mr. Prasad R Chukkapalli.
On why a section of entrepreneurs are lobbying for Hyderabad as Union Territory, the secretary of ACCI said, Hyderabad was not developed overnight, it has the toil, sweat and investment of a huge chunk of industrialists from various parts of AP and they fear the protection of their investment.
“More than the industrialists, it is politicians who are lobbying for Hyderabad as UT or joint capital, for their real estate projects, which would crash at once if the capital of Seemandhra is shifted from Hyderabad,” said an entrepreneur who chose anonymity.
The CEO of Better Castings said a lot depends on how the agitation takes shape, but our thought and message is: ‘It’s time to comeback home and look forward.”
