Exhibition Society says lease is not cancelled

The Exhibition Society’s assets are not worth more than `500 crore and are being utilised for the betterment of society and to provide education for poor, its managing committee members said on Thursday.

They said the state government had leased out 24 acres in Nampally to the society in 1950s, on which it had built educational institutions on five acres. The remaining 19 acres were open on which the numaish is conducted every year, society honarary secretary Aditya Margam and managing committee member P. Harinath Reddy told mediapersons.

They thanked Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao for approving the lease extension from 50 years to 99 years. They dismissed reports that the government had cancelled the lease.

“The lease was valid for 50 years from 2002. The government has decided to extend it to 99 years. For this, the old lease agreement has to be cancelled. But some people with vested interests are resorting to false propaganda,” Mr Margam said.

He made it clear that there were no difference between TS government and the society and said that Mr Chandrasekhar Rao and society president and finance minister Etela Rajender had been very supportive.

He said there was a misinformation campaign that the government had decided to build 2BHKs for the poor on Exhibition Ground, which was incorrect.