The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Ambit of CBI probe to be widened

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Friday, Sep 29, 2006
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Ambit of CBI probe to be widened

Special Correspondent

Probe into land acquisition by TDP regime for projects sought

HYDERABAD: The State Government on Thursday sought to bring under the ambit of the proposed Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe the land acquisition notifications issued by the erstwhile Telugu Desam Government for the Shamshabad International Airport and the Hardware Park at Kancha Imarat near here.

Chief Secretary J. Hari Narayan wrote a letter to this effect to Secretary, Department of Personnel, Government of India, in the wake of Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy's decision to seek a CBI probe into allegations of irregularities in land acquisition for the Outer Ring Road (ORR) project.

The probe could verify whether land was acquired for the airport and the hardware park with a view to causing unlawful gain to persons who possessed lands nearby, he said.

Explaining the need to broadbase the inquiry, the letter said the Government wanted total transparency in its action on important projects. Hence, the inquiry should deal with not only the ORR project but also the proposed townships of the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA) at Mankhal and Kokapet, the international airport and the hardware park.

The letter stated that the State Government had taken several initiatives to attract investments to effect faster economic growth in the recent past. International airport, Hi-Tec city, hardware park and special economic zones were just a few of them. The ORR was another prestigious project designed to decongest the roads of Hyderabad. Some changes had to be made on technical grounds causing dissatisfaction to some affected persons and a number of petitions too were received seeking changes to the ORR alignment.

The CBI should probe whether the ORR had been changed for reasons other than technical, financial and other bona fide considerations or whether the withdrawal of draft notification was to benefit individuals or groups.

Meanwhile, the High Court directed the Centre to pass appropriate orders by October 15 on the State's notification seeking the CBI inquiry.

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