Hyderabad Pharma City project to be fast-tracked

HYDERABAD: The state government has decided to fast-track the Hyderabad Pharma City (HPC) project, in light of several firms planning to shift out of China post Covid-19. The move is also important to consolidate Hyderabad’s pre-eminent position in the pharma sector.
Having already acquired 8,400 acres for the project, the government is now planning to acquire another 6,800 acres in next three months.The entire project is being planned in three phases, spread over 19,333 acres, and completed by 2025, as per the HPC master plan.

Officials said the government is keen on rolling out phase I by this year-end, to cash in on the greater demand for drug and vaccine formulations and pharma and life sciences sectors in the aftermath of Covid-19 pandemic.
HPC, which is coming up at Mucherla village in Rangareddy district, has link roads and internal roads and other infrastructure facilities. Senior officials of the Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC) and the revenue department officials met last week to thrash out the land acquisition details.
Official sources said land would be acquired in two mandals — Mucherla (1,023 acres), Meerkhanpet (270 acres) and Panjaguda (10 acres) of Kandakur mandal and Kurmidda (1,738 acres), Medipalli (1,601 acres), Nanaknagar (678 acres) and Tadiparthi (1,492 acres) of Yacharam mandal.
TSIIC managing director EV Narasimha Reddy said 8,400 acres has already been acquired. “While link roads are readied in phase I, internal roads and other facilities will be completed soon. We want to fast-track phase I and take up phase II soon,” Narasimha Reddy told TOI on Friday. The Pharma City is 48 km away from Hyderabad.
He said the government is planning to make phase I operational by the end of this year by providing infrastructure facilities. “Pharma companies have evinced interest to set up their units in HPC and submitted applications for allotment of land,” he said.
Official sources said the government is seeking financial assistance from the Centre to fast-track HPC.