Telangana CM seeks transfer of defence land for Gandhi Sarovar Project

Hyderabad, Sep 10 (IANS) Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, on Wednesday, called on Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi and requested him to transfer 98.20 acres of Defence land in Hyderabad to the state government for the prestigious Gandhi Sarovar Project.

During the meeting, the Chief Minister apprised the Defence Minister of the state’s plans to establish the “Gandhi Circle of Unity” at the confluence of the Musi and Esa rivers.

CM Revanth Reddy underscored that the Gandhi Sarovar Project will stand as an enduring emblem of national integration and the timeless ideals of Mahatma Gandhi.

During the meeting with Rajnath Singh in November last year, the Chief Minister had sought the transfer of 222.27 acres of defence land to the state for the development of the Gandhi Sarovar project at Bapu Ghat.

The state government proposes to develop Bapu Ghat at the confluence of the Esa and Musi Rivers, where the ashes of the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, were immersed.

The transfer of land was sought to facilitate the development of a centre to propagate Gandhi’s philosophy at the global level.

The Chief Minister explained to the Defence Minister various components of the Gandhi Sarovar project. The state government proposes to develop a knowledge hub to propagate Gandhi’s ideology, a meditation village, a handloom promotion centre, public entertainment spaces, a landscape, a statue of peace and a museum.

The Chief Minister also announced last year that the world’s tallest statue of Mahatma Gandhi will be installed at Bapu Ghat.

Meanwhile, during the meeting, National Highways and Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, on Tuesday evening, the Chief Minister requested the sanction of a 12-lane greenfield road network connecting Bharat Future City to Bandaru Port via Amaravati.

The Chief Minister reminded the Union Minister that the development of a greenfield road network connecting the capital cities of the two Telugu States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana was assured in the AP Reorganisation Act 2004. Since Telangana does not have a seaport, the CM appealed to Gadkari to sanction a greenfield road to facilitate the transportation of goods from Hyderabad to the port directly.

CM Revanth Reddy briefed the Union Minister that 118 km of this greenfield road will be situated in Telangana, and the remaining part will be in Andhra Pradesh.

Gadkari assured that he will send an official team to Hyderabad to study the Bharat Future City-Amaravati-Bandar Port Greenfield Road project. The CM also said that a review will be held in Hyderabad on September 22 with NHAI.

--IANS

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