The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Real estate boom

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Tuesday, Jun 24, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Real estate boom

Real estate boom in Visakhapatnam has reached alarming proportions. An old timer recalled how an increase in square yard cost by Rs. 4 in Lawson’s Bay Colony layout by the then Town Planning Trust four decades ago was challenged in a court of law. Even at Pandurangapuram layout, there was no draw of lots. Those who applied individually were given 500 to 600 square yards for a nominal amount.

Due to the unprecedented boom, thanks to open auction policy followed by VUDA, now a square yard costs Rs.30,000 to Rs.40,000 in residential areas and in commercial areas, it is between Rs.40,000 and Rs.50,000. The authorities should launch schemes to address the housing needs of lower and middle income groups without profit motive.

RTI Act

The general feeling is that politicians force officials to circumvent rules or simply ignore them to help themselves and their followers (and also that officials do not mind as they too can demand their pound of flesh) but there is one Act that helps the politicians to get things done in the right manner, says Commissioner of AP State Information Commission R. Dileep Reddy.

The Right to Information Act can give all details of a project or a programme in addition to other information one seeks from any Government office. Hence people’s representatives should have complete awareness of the Act. It is people’s representatives who make decisions by taking people’s opinions (rather voters’ opinions) into consideration and thus become more answerable to people than the bureaucracy. So create awareness about the Act. If a better awareness is created among people on what is being done to them, the officials cannot be influenced and people’s representatives can also insist that the officials do the right things. If the people and beneficiaries of a scheme are activated even the bad deeds done by a high-level politician can be brought to light, explained Mr. Dileep Reddy.

Don’t put pressure on officials and also make them discharge their duties according to the rules, he said at an awareness programme held for ZPTCs and MPPs here last week.

Answering queries from some participants, he said one should only seek information with the help of RTI Act but should not make comments. But the Commission’s decisions can be challenged in a court of law, he added.

Santosh Patnaik and G. Narasimha Rao

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