New growth is spread evenly all around on city’s outskirts

■ HMDA generates `526.35 crore giving permissions in just six months

With real estate reaching saturation point in cities such as New Delhi and Mumbai, builders and developers are investing in Hyderabad as prices here are more affordable.

This is evident in HMDA’s half yearly report which shows that the HMDA has accorded twice the number of building and layout permissions scattered around the city as it has done in previous years. Unlike previously, the permission has been given evenly to locations in the north, south, east and west of the city.

Several building and layout permissions have been reportedly given in Uppal, Ghatkesar, Medchal highway, Narapally, and Kompally. Other areas on the city’s outskirts have also seen much activity.

Realtors say the factors contributing to this rapid development are a stable government, shift of industries to the northern part of the city, the Pharma City in the southern part, Metro Rail and development of the IT sector in the eastern parts.

HMDA’s town planning department had issued

1,100 building permissions in financial year

2017-18 which has gone up to 2,524 permissions in the six months from June

2018. An official in the department said that the planning department alone generated `526.35 crore in six months, when it had collected just

`299.45 crore in all of the previous financial year.

Besides building permission, the HMDA has issued 18 no-objection certificates for setting up petrol bunks, with four still being processed.

HMDA’s Development Permission Management System has approved 458 draft layouts, 18 draft layouts for constructing gated communities, one for setting up clubhouse,

53 occupancy certificates,

101 building permissions for setting up industries through TS-iPass and 62 layouts in six months.

The official quoted above claimed that since there were no open lands in the GHMC area, citizens and builders were buying land in HMDA’s jurisdiction since land here is cheaper than in the core city. He said most of the approved layouts were surrounding nearby towns or headquarters of newly formed districts. These towns will be developed into satellite townships which will eventually have shopping malls, multiplexes, open spaces, a transport system,