Hyderabad: Fresh allegations of corruption have rocked the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), with applicants complaining that staff are demanding bribes for routine tasks linked to Layout Regularisation Scheme (LRS) approvals.
According to disgruntled applicants, the process of securing LRS approvals at the HMDA office has turned into a pay-to-play affair. Outsourced staff, known as JPPs, allegedly ask for Rs.2,000 to conduct field inspections and Rs.5,000 to grant LRS approvals payments applicants say have become the norm rather than the exception.
The alleged extortion comes at a time when the HMDA has recruited nearly 50 JPPs through outsourcing to help clear a backlog of 3.44 lakh LRS applications from areas under gram panchayats that now fall under the HMDA’s jurisdiction. With no municipal offices to handle these applications, the authority had hoped the additional staff would speed up processing.
However, applicants are now alleging that unless they pay up, their files are left to gather dust. “If you don’t pay, they keep your application pending,” one applicant said, echoing the frustration of many others who say they’ve been forced to pay bribes just to keep their paperwork moving.
Insiders at HMDA admitted that three months’ worth of unpaid salaries have left the outsourced staff desperate, leading to a spike in such alleged bribe demands. “They haven’t been paid for months, so they’re making up the difference from the applicants,” a senior staff member claimed, underscoring the financial strain that’s fuelling the problem.
The allegations, if true, highlight a worrying breakdown in governance and accountability at HMDA, raising questions about the effectiveness of the authority’s oversight mechanisms. Applicants are demanding swift intervention to end the alleged bribe culture and ensure fair, transparent processing of their long-pending LRS applications.
