Hydrerabad dual capital

January 1, 2010





TWO MAJOR STUMBLING BLOCKS
FOR THE ROAD MAP ON TELANGANA


FIRST IS HYDERABAD DUAL CAPITAL FOR 7 YEARS ?
SECOND WILL ANDHRA ASSMEBLY PASS RESOLUTION?




Sources in the Union Home Ministry is preparing points for the ROAD MAP
a draft paper on formation of the Telengana state for the meeting with leaders of Andhra Pradesh parties here on Tuesday.

It proposes a Union Territory status to Hyderabad alike Chandigarh and an unanimous resolution by the state assembly to proceed further for carving out the new state, a top source privy to the first draft disclosed.

Yet to be finalised is the time-frame as to whether Hyderabad should be a Union Territory for seven years or ten years, the source said, stating that Home Minister P Chidambaram will have the final say on whether to mention any time-frame at all or not.

Chandigarh was made a common capital of both Punjab and Haryana at the time of trifurcation of old Punjab state in 1966 and the dispute over who gets it finally and who sets up a new state capital remains undecided even after 44 years. The Home Ministry may, therefore, propose a timeframe to avoid this difficulty.

Chidambaram will also decide whether the "internal note" being prepared by the Centre-States division in the Home Ministry is circulaed in the meeting as the Centre's viewpoint or used only as a background material by him while talking to the Andhra leaders.

Union Home Secretary GK Pillai is personally going through the background material being collected by the division while a joint secretary has been designated to coordinate with the eight political parties invited to the meeting on January 5.

Expecting the participants to be not more than 50, the ministry intends to hold the meeting in its conference hall of North Block itself. As an alternative, a conference room in the Vigyan Bhawan has also been booked.

Inquiries with the AICC headquarters showed that the Congress will be represented in the meeting by Chief Minister K Rosaiah, and Andhra PCC chief D Srinivasa. It is still not clear whether senior party MP K S Rao, who has emerged as a spokesman for the non-Telengana faction will also be included.

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