The Telangana government has decided to shift about 2,800 industrial units from Hyderabad’s core urban region as part of a broader plan to restructure economic activity around the city. The government has introduced two policy frameworks to facilitate the move. It first divided the state into three zones—CURE, PURE, and RARE—to guide economic growth and planning, and then introduced the Hyderabad Industrial Land Transformation Policy (HILTP) to relocate industries from the urban core and allow for the redevelopment of the land they currently occupy.
CURE (Core Urban Region Economy) refers to the Hyderabad metropolitan core, largely within the Outer Ring Road, where the focus will be on services, technology, innovation, and sustainable urban development. PURE (Peri-Urban Region Economy) encompasses the area between the Outer Ring Road and the proposed Regional Ring Road, and is envisioned as a hub for manufacturing, logistics, and industrial expansion. RARE (Rural Agriculture Region Economy) includes areas beyond the Regional Ring Road up to the state’s borders, with an emphasis on agriculture, agro-processing, and rural livelihoods.
The HILTP allows existing landowners in these industrial areas to redevelop their land for mixed uses, including residential projects, commercial complexes, and entertainment spaces.
Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has said there will be no pollution-causing industrial units in the CURE area and that such units will be shifted to the PURE zone. The government has identified 60 locations in the PURE area and is developing the required infrastructure. Officials in the industries department said unit owners would be given six months to relocate.
Of the 2,800 units identified for relocation, about 1,700 are classified as polluting industries, and the department is focusing first on their shift. Although the government announced the HILTP five months ago, detailed operational guidelines have not yet been issued, and the Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) is awaiting the government’s approval to proceed, according to a report in The Times of India. The government is considering retaining only industries in advanced and strategic sectors, such as defence, aerospace, and advanced electronics, within the city limits.
The policy opens up 9,292.53 acres of industrial land for real estate development. Hyderabad currently has 22 industrial areas, including Patancheru, Balanagar, Kushaiguda, Sanathnagar, and Jeedimetla. These areas were developed on the city’s outskirts more than 50 years ago. Many now house factories with outdated machinery, and several units have become defunct. As Hyderabad expanded, these industrial areas became surrounded by residential neighbourhoods, exposing residents to pollution from the units.
Under the policy, unit owners can acquire full ownership rights over their land by paying 30 per cent of the land’s registration value. The Opposition has alleged corruption in the scheme, arguing that registration values are already lower than market rates and that offering further concessions amounts to handing over prime land at cheap rates—less than 10 per cent of the market rate. The government maintains that the concessional terms are intended to encourage industries to relocate quickly without resistance or prolonged legal disputes, and also to ensure rapid urban development.
