As in the past, whenever the T word was uttered, real estate prices would either fall or stabilise in and around Hyderabad, while they go up in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam anticipating that one of these cities had a chance of becoming a capital city, this time too land rates in Andhra metros have suddenly shot up by 10% to 15%, according to real estate brokers.
"Even the Congress workers have voted for TRS fearing weakening of the Telangana movement". - Rajasekhara Reddy
Investors looking at the state are expected to take a cautious approach and will be in wait and watch mode for the next few months. "The pace and direction of investments into the state will be determined by the signals the TRS will send in the next few days or weeks," says Parakala Prabhakar, director, Centre for Public Policy Studies.The writing on the wall has become more clear after the victory of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) president, K Chandrasekhara Rao, in the Karimnagar by election. Rao retained his seat with a convincing lead of over two lakh votes over his nearest rival, Congress candidate T Jeevan Reddy. He improved his 2004 performance by over 70,000 votes. Though the win is not a surprise for many, the lead that Rao got shows the intense commitment the Telangana people attach to separate statehood.
Interestingly, chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, who took development as plank in the elections, conceded defeat. He said, "Even the Congress workers have voted for TRS fearing weakening of the Telangana movement." He congratulated Rao for his landslide victory. Not only Reddy, even Telugu Desam party leader, Chandrababu Naidu, who championed for a united Andhra Pradesh, said his party would review its stand on a separate Telangana.
The win will also re-order the relationship between the chief minister and the party high command, and dissident voices in the Congress legislature party will be heard, he adds.
According to sources, TRS leaders are expected to meet other United Progressive Alliance partners to pressure the Congress leadership to introduce a separate statehood Bill in Parliament. TRS senior leader, A Narendra, told the media that his party would decide its future course of action only after meeting other UPA constituents in Delhi.
