Unveiling his development vision, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao on Friday said that he would replicate Singapore model to develop “Brand Telangana” and “Brand Hyderabad”. Addressing the IIM Singapore Alumni at Singapore as part of IIM-PACT –2014 conference, the Chief Minister said his government was determined to develop “Brand Telangana” in such a way that it would be applauded all over the world, be it in urban infrastructure, Information Technology, Industry or the quality of life of the ordinary man.
KCR says his govt will make the State as No. 1 investment destination for global players
“The Telangana government has recently approved an additional budget of Rs 350 crores to strengthen security. The environs of the city of Hyderabad will be monitored by one lakh CCTVs, 10,000 of which are already in place,” KCR said. He said that after witnessing the best of Singapore, he had no doubt in his mind that the new State of Telangana could also be developed on similar lines. The growth story of Singapore was truly remarkable as it was like any other developing country about 60 years, he said. But, the progress it has achieved through strong leadership, visionary policies and collective participation of the people was very inspiring, the Chief Minister said.
Stressing on the importance of industrialization of any State to develop economically, he said that Government has decided to bring in a new Industrial Policy which would inspire both international and domestic industry groups, investors and entrepreneurs to choose Telangana as their destination of first choice. “With the new Land Acquisition Act in India, acquiring private lands in India has become very difficult now and this is a disadvantage that will be encountered by most other States in India. Large scale industrialization in my opinion is now possible only in those States where the government has clear title lands in its possession for industrial purposes.
We in Telangana are truly lucky that we have ample lands throughout the State for industry,” the Chief Minister said. He assured that all industries would now be given the required permissions and clearances through a very effective Automatic Approval System, which would be a step ahead of the traditional single window system. “I will personally monitor this approval process through a Chasing Cell in my office,” he said. He informed that the government would come up with a package of incentives that would be much better than what was on offer now by other States in India. KCR said that despite being a new State, there were some significant advantages that Telangana had.
Hyderabad was now rated on par with the top Metropolises in the country and in certain respects, even with the best international cities, he observed. Hyderabad was the home to a thriving IT, biotechnology and pharma industry and some of the top names among the Fortune 500 Pharma and Vaccine Companies were located in the city, the Chief Minister said. Hyderabad has emerged as the premier destination for IT Companies and is the second largest exporter of IT products in India, accounting for about Rs 67,000 crores worth exports. “My vision for Hyderabad is not simply that of a digital city where the focus is mainly on Information Technology and Communications. My vision is that of a smart city, where the Government will make investments in lot of areas” he said.
Source: Metro India
