Hyderabad: In a major push to take industrial growth beyond Hyderabad, the Telangana govt has set the ball rolling for what could become one of its largest industrial clusters, proposing a 10,000 acre park in backward Adilabad – second in scale only to the sprawling 14,000 acre Pharma City planned in the city’s emerging Future City corridor.Revenue authorities have already identified land parcels in Bhoraj and Bheempur mandals in Adilabad, with the acquisition process expected to begin next month. The Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) has begun work on a detailed project report, a key step before initiating formal land acquisition.The proposed site has been strategically chosen for its proximity to the Hyderabad-Nagpur highway and it being within reach of a proposed airport in Adilabad.“The defence airstrip near Adilabad town, which is being revived with Centre’s help, has about 369 acres. Another 700 acres would be required for the airport. Bhoraj and Bheempur are about 20 km from the proposed airport and around 10 km from the Hyderabad-Nagpur highway,” a senior district official told TOI.Officials said connectivity is a decisive factor. Industrial ecosystems backed by airports and highways tend to draw companies, as seen in the case of Kakatiya mega textile park in Warangal, which is expected to benefit further if the local airport becomes operational.According to sources, nearly half of the proposed 10,000 acres comprises govt and ceiling-assigned land (govt-owned land exceeding agricultural holding limits surrendered to the state and, subsequently, assigned to landless poor, farmers or ex-servicemen for cultivation or housing). The remaining portion is private patta land.Around 4,000 acres have been identified in Bhoraj mandal alone.“The govt will primarily take over only non-arable land,” a senior district official said.Land classification details indicate that about 2,822.38 acres fall under arable land, while 3,234.79 acres are non-arable. Identified parcels span several villages and tribal hamlets, including Hathighat, Rampur, Guda and Gimma (B) in Bhoraj, and Tamsi (K), Pippalkoti, Gollaghat and Gunjala in Bheempur.With land acquisition turning contentious in recent projects such as Lagacherla in Vikarabad district, the govt is treading cautiously as there are tribal habitations in the identified zones, sources said.Chief minister A Revanth Reddy had announced the proposal during his visit to Adilabad a few months ago, directing officials to identify land. The move is aimed at correcting the region’s industrial imbalance, a senior official said.Adilabad currently lacks a functional industrial park, with the Cement Corporation of India unit having shut down nearly three decades ago. In contrast, districts carved out of the erstwhile Adilabad such as Asifabad and Mancherial already host industrial clusters.Officials in TGIIC said the proposed park is expected to generate employment for local youth and spur economic activity in the region.A month ago, in-charge minister Jupally Krishna Rao, Rajya Sabha MP Vem Narender Reddy and BJP MLA Payal Shankar conducted an aerial survey of the identified land parcels, signalling the project’s forward movement.
