A letter written by Health Minister D. L. Ravindra Reddy on Wednesday cast serious doubts on the award of 4.6 acres of Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) lands in Nandagiri Hills in the city by reducing the off set price from Rs. 23 crore to Rs. 18 crore.
According to sources, Dr. Reddy in his letter to Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy urged him to order an inquiry into the manner in which HMDA awarded land in Nandagiri Hills to the highest bidder by bringing down the off set price.
He said HMDA had auctioned individual plots in Nandagiri Hills. It had reduced the offset price from Rs. 23 crore to Rs. 18 crore to benefit one G. Amarender Reddy to get 4.6 acres at a lesser amount.
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The Minister raised doubts that bid documents opened ahead of the auction showed that the difference between Net-Net Ventures Private Limited and Navayuga Engineering Company Limited was only Rs. 20 lakh. The Minister in his letter said: “I do not know whether it is a coincidence or a deal was struck by these two companies. The market value would be around Rs. 150 crore.”
He questioned the need to reduce the off set price when the rate for sale of land in that area was very high. He wanted the Chief Secretary to probe the auction. He brought to the notice of the Chief Minister that a Bangalore based firm had evinced interest to buy the land paying Rs. 130 crore. The company was prevented from quoting the bid by some Cabinet Ministers, he charged.