It’s surely a matter of elation for a true-blue Hyderabadi like me to note that the four centuries and nearly two decades-old culturally vibrant historic ‘pearl’ city of the Charminar, the Mecca Masjid, the Lad Bazar, the Falaknuma and Chowmahalla palaces, the Salarjung Museum, the Osmania University, the Birla temple, the monolithic Buddha in the midst of the Hussain Sagar and the Golconda Fort, is finally, a metropolitan city!

The first ‘major’ proof of Hyderabad’s upgradation as the latest metropolis of the South with an area extending over 6,850 sq km, following the formal expansion of the jurisdiction of the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA), is the transformation of the HUDA into the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) whose complex’s foundation was laid by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy near the NAC Building at Hitex Grounds in Madhapur (Cyberabad) last Sunday (August 24).

Interestingly, the ‘new’ city of Hyderabad, which used to include areas like Abids, Basheerbagh, Himayatnagar, Punjagutta, Ameerpet, Begumpet and Secunderabad, no longer seems to be new (and hence, old?) as the axis of development is now in the direction of Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills and Cyberabad (comprising areas like Madhapur, Gachibowli, Kondapur, Miyapur and Tellapur) which boasts of campuses of reputable institutions of higher studies like the International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), the Indian School of Business (ISB), MNCs like Microsoft and Infosys, apart from plush showrooms of the choicest international brands and the trendiest residential apartment complexes inhabited by a vibrant assortment drawn from different parts of India, and a significantly increasing number of foreigners. Today, there’s as much traffic on the roads of Cyberabad as on the Begumpet, Ameerpet and Abids roads, which is indicative of the kind of rapid growth the region is witnessing and is poised to witness in the near future.

In such a scenario, one wonders about the fate of the Old City of Hyderabad. As it is, it has been at the receiving end with regard to tangible growth in the spheres of infrastructure, economy and education — a classic example of government apathy. For starters, there’s not a single government institution worth its name (except the Andhra Pradesh High Court and police stations) located in this neglected yet historically and culturally significant part of Hyderabad. Then, there’s not a single notable institution of higher education or a reliable corporate hospital situated in this densely populated region. 

The only redeeming fact seems to be the relatively lucky proximity of the Old City to the buzzing Shamshabad International Airport when compared to the latter’s distance from the newer regions of the city.