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Fifteen gram panchayats in Rangareddy district have been merged with Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation with immediate effect.
With the merger of these 15 more gram panchayats in to the GHMC covering the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, its limits will now be spread to about 750 sq km. These new panchayats have added 125 sq km to the corporation limits of 625 sq km.
In a Government order passed on Saturday, the department of Municipal Administration and Urban Development have merged these into the GHMC limits as they are contiguous and facilitate in better administration. The merger was notified after the Panchayat Raj Department de-notified these gram panchayats.
The merger is seen to enable GHMC to provide centralised administration and necessary support to civic amenities. This move is also seen to provide co-ordinated development of infrastructure and also help in maintenance of services and to meet the challenges thrown up by fast-paced of growth in Hyderabad and its urban spread.
The integrated development of these panchayats merged with GHMC will enable the corporation to extend metropolitan and community development needs in the core city and also in the surrounding areas. These panchayats on their own, with lower resources, will not be able to cope up with the increasing pressure on the infrastructure due to rapid urbanisation.
Earlier, it was proposed to incorporate about 25 gram panchayats into the corporation limits. An order was issued and views of the general public were sought. The matter was also taken up in the High Court of Andhra Pradesh. The court had directed the Government to consider the views of people and their objections before taking any decision.
The issue of merger of these gram panchayats into the corporation limits has now become a matter of political debate especially in the backdrop of the move to carve out a separate State of Telangana where Hyderabad has become a matter of contention between various regions in the State.
rishikumar.vundi@thehindu.co.in
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