New Secretariat will develop Cantonment, says SCB

Hyderabad: The Secretariat coming up in Bison Polo Ground will present the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB)  with a golden opportunity to address its perennial problems besides undertaking a development path, board members said.

When the Secretariat comes up, SCB will be the only one of the 60 plus cantonment boards to house the headquarters of the state administration.

According to SCB vice-president J. Ramakrishna, there are many advantages for the SCB if the Secretariat comes up in its jurisdiction.

“The government will be giving top priority to resolving long-standing issues at the earliest. Water and power supply lines will be streamlined as also solid waste management. SCB will get property tax and service charges for extending maintenance and civic works to the Secretariat,” he said.

He said the SCB will be engaged by the government more in conducting state festivals, functions and celebrations. 

Businesses, hotels and traders will prosper with thousands of visitors coming to the Secretariat, Mr Ramakrishna said.

All this while, SCB faced neglect because the state government used to feel that the Centre would take care of its issues. In the defence ministry’s scheme of things cantonments get the least priority.

Elected representatives advised the Congress to stop creating obstacles to a project that could give a big makeover to the SCB. 

They appealed to the party to give constructive inputs on how to ground the project so that the four lakh people staying in the area could reap the benefits.

Mr Ramakrisha stated that all the eight board members would try to reach out to hundreds of colony associations, make them understand the numerous advantages and seek their support to ensure new Secretariat is built here.