Telangana Seeks AP Secretariat Buildings Back

Hyderabad: Telangana cabinet on Friday passed a resolution requesting that the buildings in Hyderabad which are allocated to Andhra Pradesh (AP) be handed over to the new-formed state.

Certain government buildings, including the secretariat, have been allocated to the residual state of Andhra Pradesh as Hyderabad is the common capital of the two states for 10 years as per the Andhra Pradesh Re-organisation Act.

Telangana Deputy chief minister Kadiam Srihari told reporters after the cabinet meeting that the AP government had already shifted its offices, including chief minister's office and offices of secretaries and heads of department to its upcoming capital, Amaravati. The AP government was thus not using the buildings in Hyderabad, he said.

Telangana government had also taken note of AP chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu's statement that his government would deliberate on handing over the buildings to Telangana, Srihari said. The buildings are to be allocated by the Governor who is common to both states, he said.

Telangana government is reportedly considering building a new secretariat because of 'vastu' defects in the current building. The cabinet also decided to form separate cabinet sub-committees to study the impact of the decision of Brijesh Kumar tribunal on sharing of Krishna river water, improvement in administration of universities, and other issues.

The government also decided to expeditiously clear the dues under the students' tuition fees reimbursement scheme, farmers' loan waiver and 'Arogya Sri' health scheme.