Harish Rao Vows to Scrap 'Future City'
“If the Pharma City is established, it will generate job opportunities for thousands of young people,” he said during his ongoing visit to the United States.
Hyderabad:Senior BRS leader T. Harish Rao asserted on Friday that his party would cancel the Future City project and restore the original Pharma City initiative when the BRS returned to power. He alleged that land acquired from farmers was being diverted into real estate business.
“If the Pharma City is established, it will generate job opportunities for thousands of young people,” he said during his ongoing visit to the United States.
The former minister claimed the Congress feared the BRS would gain credit if Pharma City was developed. “Mark my words. No matter what the present government does, Pharma City which was originally envisioned will be the project that will ultimately come to fruition,” Harish Rao said.
He noted that the previous BRS government had acquired 16,000 acres specifically for Pharma City and secured environmental clearances from the Centre. He alleged the state government was shifting 75 per cent of the focus to commercial activities and real estate, leaving only 25 per cent for pharmaceutical development.
Harish Rao further claimed the Future City framework was legally flawed and would not withstand court scrutiny. He accused the government of creating hype over Future City while deceptively telling the High Court that the Pharma City project had not been cancelled.
The Congress on Friday strongly criticised senior BRS leader T. Harish Rao for declaring that the party would scrap the Bharat Future City project if it returned to power in Telangana.
Speaking to media persons at Gandhi Bhavan, Government Whip Yennam Srinivas Reddy strongly defended the Bharat Future City initiative and termed the BRS’ stance as “blackmail politics” aimed at discouraging investments and depriving Telangana youths of future employment opportunities.
Srinivas Reddy said non-resident Indians (NRIs) in the United States were showing keen interest in investing in Future City and asserted that several companies had complete faith in the leadership of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy despite the Opposition propaganda.
He said the proposed Pharma City zone within Future City would include a green pharma zone and a life sciences zone. Clarifying the government’s stand on environmental concerns, he stated that only pollution-free pharmaceutical industries would be allowed in the project area to protect Telangana from environmental damage.
The Congress MLA further said the Chief Minister envisioned Future City as India’s first “net-zero greenfield smart city” with world-class infrastructure and connectivity. He added that the government was also planning connectivity to the Machilipatnam Port to boost industrial growth and economic development in the region.