GHMC expansion: Govt promises planned growth, no addl tax burden

Hyderabad: Legislative Affairs Minister D Sridhar Babu stated that the government merged villages into the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to ensure planned and uniform growth. He emphasised that the integration of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) into GHMC will not impose any additional tax burden on the common man.

Responding on behalf of Municipal Minister and Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy during the debate on The Telangana Municipalities (Fourth Amendment) Bill-2025, Three Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill-2025, and The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill-2025, Sridhar Babu said the government will provide a comprehensive development plan for GHMC. “The growth should be uniform across GHMC,” he added.

The minister explained that the Second Amendment Bill-2025 aims to ensure uniform taxes, simplified governance, and sustainable growth. He clarified that the creation of 12 zones and 60 circles is part of the decentralisation strategy and highlighted that 56 villages have been included in GHMC.

He added, “Integration of villages into GHMC is aimed at providing effective services to citizens. We will consider public opinion while dividing the corporations. Currently, we have decided to divide GHMC into three corporations.”

Congress MLA from Ibrahimpatnam also expressed concern, stating that merging the 57 villages puts the existence of Rangareddy district into question and urged the government to consider public opinion before passing the bill.

CPI MLA Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao called for careful planning in decentralisation, assessing governance capacity, and solving infrastructure challenges. The debate also saw participation from AIMIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi.