GHMC Seeks Central Support for Musi Development

Hyderabad: GHMC commissioner Amrapali Kata, along with senior officials, met the members of the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs (MoHUA) on Monday to pitch in for funds for Musi development in addition to scaling up the city's infrastructure.

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) chief attended a meeting related to assessment parameters of urban local bodies (ULBs) organised by the MoHUA, along with officials working on Musi River Front Development Corporation (MRDCL). Kata was accompanied by Sneha Shabarish, GHMC additional commissioner for revenue wing and Gouthami Poojari, joint managing director, MRDCL. The GHMC and MRDCL are planning to raise funds through bonds for the city's development.

MoHUA is deliberating to ensure that ULBS can access finances through different financing instruments. The task is in the initial stage and credit lending agencies who are a part of this project will lend the ULBs. Fifty-three parameters have been shortlisted to assess the creditworthiness of ULBs.

The GHMC had earlier raised municipal bonds worth Rs.495 crore in three trenches and was able to mobilise five rupee term loans (RTLs) of Rs.5,895 crore to fund major infrastructure projects. However, the corporation raised it independently without the support of the state government or Centre.

Since then, the GHMC has been credit-rated by two external rating agencies every year as required by the SEBI or the lenders. India Rating and Care Ratings, are credit rating, the GHMC’s borrowings and both of them gave the corporation ‘AA’.

Officials from the ULBs of Visakhapatnam, Pune, Chennai, Surat and Indore also participated in the MoHUA programme.