Nalamada Uttam Kumar Reddy, MLA from Huzurnagar in the Telangana Legislative Assembly, takes a stroll down memory lane and recalls his memories of Hyderabad. “I was born and brought up in Hyderabad.
My family owned most of the agricultural land in the city. Back then the city was more orderly and pleasant. Now, there’s a lot of hustle and bustle here. The traffic is chaotic. I prefer the old Hyderabad,” he says, adding that the traffic and the drainage system that caused problems during the floods are the things that must change in the city.
Uttam Kumar is proud of how Hyderabad is developing. “There’s world class infrastructure here. The Outer Ring Road, airport, metro rail... I could go on. Hyderabad is the best city to live in,” he says.
The MLA met his wife Padmavathi Reddy in the city too. “We celebrate all the festivals like Dasara, Diwali, and Makar Sankranti grandly at home. Back in my childhood, the sky was absolutely colourful with kites during Sankranti. Now, we don’t see that anymore. There is so much cultural diversity in the city that we all know about Islamic and other festivals too. There are Marwadis, Telugus, Tamils... there is a harmonious atmosphere. That is one reason why I call myself a proud Hyderabadi. No matter where a person is from, he will find it easy to settle here,” he says. Uttam Kumar loves how acceptable and welcoming people in Hyderabad are. “The people and the beautiful weather are the reasons why one would not want to leave the city,” he concludes.
