Explained: How the trifurcation of urban Hyderabad’s municipal body will work

On February 11, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s Congress government split the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) into three corporations with one commissioner each. While officials say the move will help in administrative ease, Hyderabad is not the first major Indian city to experiment with splitting its civic body. Back in 2012, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was trifurcated, but reunified in 2022 after mixed results. More recently, in July 2025, the Karnataka government split the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike into five smaller corporations. While the effectiveness of the split will only be seen in the future, this is how the three bodies will function. How will the trifurcation work? The split has led to formation of three corporations — the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), Cyberabad Municipal Corporation (CMC) and Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation (MMC). The move follows the government’s push to expand the erstwhile GHMC limits to include the merger of 27 surrounding local bodies with it. This merger had increased the ward strength of GHMC from 150 to 300. The trifurcation is considered to be one of the most substantive administrative moves after Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (HMC) was expanded to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) in 2007. Who heads the new corporations now? After trifurcation, GHMC will now have 150 wards, like before. CMC will have 76 wards and MMC will have 74 wards. According to a government order issued on February 11, G Srijana will serve as the commissioner for CMC while T Vinay Krishna Reddy will be the MMC commissioner. R V Karnan was retained as commissioner of GHMC. All three will report to Jayesh Ranjan, chief secretary (metropolitan area and urban development). Ranjan will supervise governance across all the three corporations in the capacity as special officer. The Mandal example According to Ranjan the trifurcation is in line with “the stellar example set by the Telugu states in creating smaller administrative units”. Andhra Pradesh was the first state to make mandal an administrative unit about 30 years ago. After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, 33 districts were carved out of ten Telangana districts. “The trifurcation helps in bringing the administration to the doorstep of the people. Keep it in smaller units and manageable units,” Ranjan said. How will the three corporations interact with one another? Ranjan said: “Some kind of a uniform strategy plan or action will be implemented in all the three corporations”. For instance sanitation plans, conservation of water bodies, recreation, tourism and heritage will all have strategic plans which are common across all the three corporations. “For heritage we will have to adopt a monument plan,” Ranjan said, as an example. There will also be mobility planning for people who are moving from one corporation limits to the other. “The decentralisation will happen at the zonal level; there are 12 zones,” he said. There will be commonality in administrative functions across all three corporations. How does this work politically? While the civil servants like Ranjan will execute the administrative functions, the three corporations will have 300 wards for which urban local body elections will be held later this year. Through indirect elections, three Mayors are also expected to be elected. The Congress which is in power, the BRS and BJP which are in opposition will have to prove its strength in all the three corporations. The AIMIM, meanwhile, is set to emerge as a key player in the GHMC limits. Nikhila Henry is an Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, based in Hyderabad. With a career spanning 17 years, she has established herself as an authoritative voice on South Indian affairs, specialising in the complex intersections of politics, education, and social justice. Experience & Career: Nikhila commenced her journalism career in 2007 as an education correspondent for The Times of India in Hyderabad,where she gained recognition for her coverage of student politics. Her professional trajectory includes a four-year tenure at The Hindu, where she focused on minority affairs and social welfare. In 2019, she took on a leadership role as the South Bureau Chief for The Quint, where she directed regional coverage across all five South Indian states. Her expansive career also includes a tenure at the BBC in New Delhi and contributions to prestigious international outlets such as The Sunday Times (London) and HuffPost India. Expertise & Focus Areas Nikhila’s reportage is marked by a deep-seated understanding of grassroots movements and institutional policy. Her core focus areas include: Regional Politics: Comprehensive analysis of the socio-political dynamics across South India. Education & Student Movements: Chronicling the evolution of Indian academics and the rise of youth activism. Minority Affairs: Rigorous reporting on the welfare, rights, and challenges facing marginalized communities. National Beat: Elevating regional stories to national prominence through investigative and on-ground reporting. Authoritativeness & Trust A respected figure in Indian media, Nikhila is not only a seasoned reporter but also an accomplished author and editor. She authored the critically acclaimed book The Ferment: Youth Unrest in India and edited Caste is Not a Rumour, a collection of writings by Rohith Vemula. Her dual background in daily news reporting and long-form authorship allows her to provide readers with a nuanced, historically-informed perspective on contemporary Indian society. Find all stories by Nikhila Henry here. ... Read More