Land acquisition an uphill task in Hyd: YSR

Terming land acquisition as one of the major problems in Hyderabad, chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy said that the state government was, however, going ahead with its plans of acquiring land by adopting a humanistic approach.

"Acquiring land is a major problem in Hyderabad because of the compensation issue. The government's compensation package is not considered good because of spiralling land prices. We are, however, trying to ensure that the displaced get a good compensation and earn a decent livelihood even in their new place of stay," Reddy said while speaking at The Times of India's conference on 'Hyderabad: The Road Ahead - From Golconda to the Globe'.

While giving credit to former chief minister and Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu for transforming Hyderabad, Assaduddin Owaisi, member of Parliament, said, "None of the governments in the state has worked towards providing better civic amenities to the people."

"No sincere effort has been made to solve the drinking water problem. By 2031, there will be a demand for 500 million gallons per day (mgd) of water. The shortfall in supply will, however, lead to a deficit of 315 mgd of water," Owaisi said, adding that the proposed fab city itself would require one-fourth of the existing water supply for its operations.