Hyderabad’s earlier rapid scaling of the city has given rise to a list of problems like choked roads, flooded neighbourhoods, policies that have straining water, roads, and drainage systems, and inconsistent service delivery.
Telangana is now building from scratch by planning purposely designed city on the greenfield land of Ranga Reddy District, which takes learnings from Chandigarh, HITEC City, and global precedents like Songdo and Putrajaya.
Why does Hyderabad Need a New City
This city has evolved itself with respect to the requirements of people, from the 400-year old Charminar- centered Old city, to the British planned Secunderabad Army Cantonment in 1798, to the IT driven HITEC City area in the late 1990s.
Density of the vehicle has grown to 40% in the last six years, with 1,500 to 2,000 new additions daily. Around 1,500 major drainage channels have been encroached upon, which worsens the road flooding during monsoon seasons in areas like, Gachibowli and Madhapur. The GHMC and 27 surrounding municipalities govern the city which creates inconsistent zoning and service delivery. This greenfield project is planned to offset these existing problems, and the infrastructure is built way before the demand rather than fulfilling it after.
The Future City Development Authority (FCDA)
The Future City Development Authority (FCDA) is legally and administratively responsible for the planned development of the entire Future City area, replacing the ineffective multi-authority governance model. The FCDA’s seven thematic pillars are,
- Economic Resilience- The core focus is on diversified industrial clusters and special economic zones (SEZs), and digital infrastructure
- Equitable Growth- This is achieved through inclusive housing, and access to education and healthcare
- Net Zero Readiness- The reliance on renewable energy like EV or hydrogen-ready mobility
- 15-Minute City- Easy access to public transportation and a good walkable area for pedestrians
- Barrier-Free and Women-Safe City- Inclusion of gender-responsive plannings and universal accessibility
- Biophilic and Resilient Systems- Presence of forests, lakes, floodplains, and sponge city principles
- Circular Economy- Reuse of water, industrial symbiosis, and zero-waste strategies
13 Functional Zones
- AI City- The AI City is of area 508.94 acres and the key facilities include Corporate headquarters, Research Parks, a Centre of Excellence, a World Trade Centre, an AI Exhibition Centre, an Academy, a Data Platform, a GPC Planning Exhibition Centre, and a Smart City Brain (ICCC).
- Health City- The Health City spans across 663.87 acres and is planned as a world-class destination for medical research, treatment, and medical tourism. The northern knowledge cluster will house research institutes, laboratories, and a nursing school, while the southern belt accommodates hospitals, medical malls, hotel facilities for patients travelling from across the world.
- Entertainment and Mixed Use- The Entertainment District 685.92 acres is positioned along the central lake and combines a theme park, mall or outlet, convention centre, and hotels.
- Sports Hub- A sports arena with 100-acre cricket stadium, an 18-hole golf course with adjoining golf villas, and multi-purpose sports training and recreation centres capable of hosting national and international events, all in 433.84 acres of land.
- Residential (South)- This is one of the primary housing zones in the Bharat Future City, with 1,343.17 acres of land area. This includes organic housing islands that converge in central public plaza housing community centres and has social amenities like international schools, cultural centres, resorts, commercial centres, across the zone in accordance with planning norms.
- Furniture Park- This area is dedicated for the manufacturing cluster for furniture and allied industries with 248.46 acres of land area, served by the grid road network and internal metro or BRTS connectivity.
- EV and ESS Park- These are dedicated to the electric vehicle and energy storage system manufacturing, and is one of the two largest industrial zones in the plan for 2,002.49 acres, and is built for walk-to-work model, with residential towers and town centres co-located, and even includes pocket parks and green buffers throughout the city.
- Eco Tourism Zoo- This zone is for preserving and enhancing the existing natural landscape, including the reserve forest, seasonal streams, and waterbodies of a total region of 346.69 acres.
- Life Sciences Hub- This is the single largest region in the master plan with 4,073.48 acres, and is designed for large-scale pharmaceutical, biotech, and life-sciences manufacturing and research, and features a 400-acre urban forest.
- Electronics and Advanced Manufacturing Zone- This is the hub for manufacturing of electronics and advanced industrial activities, and is aligned with India’s growing semiconductor and electronics production ecosystem. It spans across an area of 2,003.73 acres, which is the second largest zone alongside the EV and ESS Park.
- Data Center Hub- For hyperscale and enterprise data centre facilities this zone is backed by the city’s high capacity power infrastructure, and is of total area 357.89 acres.
- Plotted Residential (North)- This zone is for plotted development for self-construction on individual plots, whereas the South Residential zone is for the apartment based housing. This also includes social amenities, green spaces and the city’s internal transportation network and is of the total area of 689.23 acres.
- Education Zone- It is home to Young India Skills University which is flagship institution under the Telangana Rising framework, and this zone is positioned as human capital development infrastructure. The area is 82.23 acres, but plays a foundational role in the city’s long-term economic vision.
Also read: Delhi-Siliguri High-Speed Rail Corridor: Travel Time to Shrink From 20–24 Hours to Just 6 Hours 45 Minutes – Check Cities Set to Benefit
Key Design Principles
- Walk-to-Work and 15-Minute City- With the residential areas and the town centres co-located within the industrial zones the daily commutes can be completed on foot, reducing the dependency on the vehicle.
- Blue-Green Infrastructure- The seasonal streams, waterbodies, and the 15,000 acre reserve forests increases the biodiversity accessibility in the region.
- Inclusive Housing- The organic housing islands, the plotted areas, and the high-apartments all blend together to accommodate people across all economic groups.
- Sponge City- Using semi-premeable surfaces, rain gardens, green roofs, and the subsurface water storage plans all are designed as sponge city and reduce the flooding risk.
The infrastructure facilities as water supply, power supply, and roads connectivity is a part of the master plan. The water supply’s primary source is Venkatadri Reservoir, with facilities of zero liquid discharge, rainwater harvesting, and reuse. The total power demand is estimated at 2,560 MW and the internal road connectivity is approx. 278 km and external road connectivity as Ratan Tata Radial Road of 41.5 km.
Project Cost and Status
- Road Infrastructure (Internal roads and Connectivity)- ₹5,150 Crore
- Utilities- Water, Solid Waste Management, and others- ₹6,700 Crore
- Power Distribution System- ₹2,350 Crore
- ICT and Administrative Building- ₹250 Crore
- QA-QC or Administrative Expenses- ₹2,035 Crore
- Contingency- ₹2,300 Crore
The total estimated cost is around ₹18,785 Crore
Project Progress as of Late 2025 or Early 2026
Till December 2025, the total expenditure incurred on the project stands at ₹1,962.90 crore, including the land cost. A Letter of Award (LoA) has been issued for the 19.2-km Radial Road from Raviryal to Amangal. The procurement of power switchyard equipment is targeted for completion by October 2026. Meanwhile, the selection of a consultant for market research, project phasing, financial modelling, and the Detailed Project Report (DPR) is in progress. The selection of a detailed engineering consultant is targeted by March 2026.
Bharat Future City is Telangana’s most ambitious urban planning project, with a master-planned development backed by the government. This 30,000 acre Net Zero city could potentially rebalance Hyderabad’s urban geography while creating a scalable replicable model for greenfield industrial city-building in India.