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IT hub a major bone of contention
Suresh Dharur/TNS

Hyderabad’s Charminar has been a centre of protests. — AP

Hyderabad, July 30
Hyderabad, the bustling IT hub with a population of over 80 lakh, has been a major bone of contention between the protagonists and opponents of the Telangana statehood.

Though Hyderabad is part of the Telangana region, it has, over decades, acquired the sobriquet “Mini India”, attracting people from all over India, particularly from the other two regions of the state-Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra. About 40 percent of the city’s population are migrants from the other two regions of the state.

While pro-Telangana parties have made it clear that nothing short of a separate state with Hyderabad as the capital would satisfy them, the integrationists argue that the people of the other two regions, jointly referred as “Seemandhra”, have equal stakes in the city.

Hyderabad is one of the fastest growing cities in the country, ranking fourth in the country in terms of software exports. There are fears in some quarters that the city would lose much of its sheen after the bifurcation.

There are also fears over the safety for huge investments made by Seemandhra settlers over years. The future of Hyderabad’s status has become a prime concern for people of all the three regions. Making the city a common capital after bifurcation will pose huge administrative challenges. Questions are also being raised over the viability of making it a Union Territory with elected representatives from the city, across the political spectrum, opposing such a plan. It is argued that once Hyderabad goes under the control of the Central government, the taxes and levies collected in the metropolis would go to the Central kitty, depriving the two new states of the funds for development. Almost 55 per cent of Andhra Pradesh government’s revenues are generated in Hyderabad. Also, 65 per cent of the Union government's revenues from AP are collected from Hyderabad metropolitan area.

In all, Hyderabad contributes Rs 40,000 crore towards state taxes, Rs 35,000 crore towards Central taxes and Rs 15,000 crore of local revenues. The total yield comes to Rs 90,000 crore. Similarly, exports from Hyderabad metropolitan region gross Rs 90,000 crore per annum, including IT and ITES exports of Rs 60,000 crore. The Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), a formidable political force in the city with seven MLAs and an MP, is strongly opposed to the idea of Union Territory. There are also fears that there would be a flight of capital from the city if it is made capital of Telangana. Hyderabad is home to about 700 IT and ITES companies, including global giants like Microsoft, Google, IBM, Oracle, DELL, Motorola and Deloitte.