Not commercial or residential but multi-purpose zones will be proposed along the major routes in and around the city as part of the HMDA’s (Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority) Master Plan which is likely to be submitted to the State Government in the coming months. The unified plan will cover 7,257 square km area by integrating five existing master plans.
The multi-purpose stretches, which can be used for commercial use as well as for residential purposes, includes all the three corridors of the Hyderabad Metro Rail project. The officials plan to ease rules so as to pave way for commercial buildings to come up along the Metro Rail corridor while also generating more revenue for the government.
“Once the Metro Rail starts operations, there will be a lot of commercial activity along the route. We want to fuel growth by declaring the areas as multi-purpose and allowing construction of high rise buildings. This way the government stands to get more property tax. We also plan to levy special impact fee for such commercial establishments. Those who have properties along the metro route will also see their properties valuation going up,” said a senior official of the HMDA, closely involved with the project.
Along with the metro routes, the State and National Highways are also under multi-purpose zones, as per the draft plan. Some of the residential areas with road width of 40 ft to 100 ft witnessing increased commercial activity in the last few years are also part of the zone. The GHMC had already sent a proposal to the government to declare Road No. 45 in Jubilee Hills as a commercial area and the decision regarding the status of such localities are pending.
The draft plan also recommends allowing multi-storied structures for residential houses as well as commercial establishments.
