The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) expanded its area to include many pricey localities recently. But now, it must share income from these areas with the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA). The Telangana government approved a proposal to give HMDA control over town planning approvals for buildings with more than 10 floors in the entire expanded GHMC area. During the last GHMC council meeting, corporator Sravan Vurapalli opposed the idea, demanding that "every paisa generated within GHMC’s purview should belong to the corporation." The plan, pushed by HMDA Commissioner Sarfaraz Ahmed, means GHMC will no longer get town planning revenue from rich real estate zones like Kokapet, Narsingi, Budvel, and Tellapur. These areas now have skyscrapers with up to 40-60 floors. On Hyderabad’s eastern edge, a 72-floor residential tower is coming up in Ghatkesar. With real estate prices soaring, developers and homeowners prefer tall towers, boosting HMDA’s income. Before the expansion, GHMC handled building permissions for all structures in its old area but only up to 15 meters tall (about five floors) in new areas. HMDA used to approve taller buildings outside GHMC. The new rule lets HMDA approve any building with over 10 floors, even in old GHMC zones. Officials say this helps HMDA keep funds flowing, as many new clusters under GHMC once belonged to smaller local bodies. "HMDA needs funds for several ongoing infrastructure projects. It will take some time before new growth areas develop outside the periphery of the expanded GHMC, yielding revenues for HMDA. Hence the need for this revenue sharing arrangement," said one official anonymously. Some sources believe the government wants to centralise control over these premium projects, possibly because it plans to split GHMC into three separate bodies soon.