Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhara Rao announced on Tuesday that the Central Government has in principle agreed to earmark 40 acres of land within the vicinity of the Hyderabad Golf Course near Golconda Fort into a permanent Parade Grounds.
While promising complete support from the Government side for the promotion of golf and making the capital as the final destination for all golfing activity in the country, he said, “It is a pity that the two State Governments don't have a permanent Parade Ground and we have to beg the Union Defence Ministry every year to conduct the Independence Day celebrations," he remarked.
The Chief Minister was speaking at the inauguration of the Golconda Masters Championship, the biggest golf tournament, organised by the Hyderabad Golf Association (HGA) at the Quli Qutub Shahi Tombs. He appreciated the efforts of the HGA and the Telangana Tourism Department in converting what was originally a garbage dumping yard into one of the finest golf courses.
“It gives me immense pleasure that this magnificent golf course amidst the backdrop of the historic Golconda Fort is now one looked up as one of the important destinations in the golf circuit of India," the Chief Minister said. He also went for the 'putting' to formally inaugurate the Rs.40 lakh prize money event.
"Hyderabad is a great metropolitan city with a rich history but lot more work needs to be done to convert this into a dream city, hence we have hired a renowned consultant to submit a master plan (Hafeez Contractor). We look forward to everyone to support the Government in this regard," he said.
Mr. Rao confessed that he was “never a sports enthusiast and as a youngster I was always lured to arts, culture and literature”. But “I had a secret visit to this golf course after the last year's Republic Day celebrations and felt great when I saw it for the first time. I also picked up a few things about golf from our MP and chairman of Telangana Olympic Association Jitender Reddy," he said. HGA president N. Ramesh Reddy and joint secretary Capt Dayakar Reddy briefed the Chief Minister of HGA plans.
