HYDERABAD: The Congress and TRS might be bitter rivals, vying for winning maximum number of Parliamentary constituencies in the upcoming general elections but in Chevella constituency, candidates of the two political parties are united on one front — both of them want Government Order (GO) 111 to be scrapped.
Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, the Congress candidate from Chevella, has always been vocal regarding GO 111, even when he was an MP representing the constituency from TRS party, before joining Congress last year ahead of Assembly elections.
Recently, speaking at Gandhi Bhavan in Hyderabad, he criticised the TRS government of for not taking any action on GO 111 despite being in power for five years. Even TRS is of the view that GO 111 should be scrapped and none other than the party head and CM K Chandrashekar Rao supports it.
Speaking at a public meeting at Chevella ahead of the Assembly elections in December last year, Rao had promised to scrap the GO 111 within five months of assuming power in the State. Even TRS working president, KT Rama Rao made promises regarding the same, in a recent meeting held at Shamshabad.
Political parties are rallying support for scrapping of GO 111 because a majority of locals from 84 villages under Serilingampally and Rajendranagar Assembly constituencies, where the GO is in force, have been demanding for it to be scrapped. This is mainly because the GO restricts growth of real estate industry in ten kilometer radius around Osmansagar and Himayatsagar water bodies and land value is at an all time high due to growth in IT and real estate industry, in areas surrounding the villages where GO is in force.
However, environmentalists from Hyderabad have been opposing scrapping of GO 111 tooth and nail and have approached National Green Tribunal (NGT) and even High Court, regarding issue.
Thakur Rajkumar Singh, who had approached NGT on the issue said: “It is all campaigning tactics. No political party can just scrap or dilute he provisions in GO 111 and if they attempt, it will cause legal troubles.”