Hyderabad: The state government on Sunday signed letters of intent (LoIs) with leading Japanese eco-town companies to collaborate on circular economy initiatives and establish an eco-town in Hyderabad, even as Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy decided to power digital talent exchange with Japanese cities.
“We are delighted that we would be working together to establish an eco town in Hyderabad,” said Revanth Reddy
The LoIs cover the aspects of waste management, recycling, and environmental restoration. The eco-town implements the zero emission concept, to recycle all waste generated from the industrial sector for use in other sectors. This is meant to create an environmentally harmonised socio-economy. A circular economy aims to eliminate waste and keep resources in use for as long as possible.
The Chief Minister met Kazuhisa Takeuchi, the Mayor of the Japanese city of Kitakyushu, and discussed building an Indian-style eco-town and powering digital talent exchange. Kitakyushu, located on the Kyushu Island, is renowned for its transformation of the Murasaki river — from a heavily polluted waterway to one of the cleanest, with significant riverfront development.
Once known as Japan’s most polluted city, Kitakyushu has undergone a remarkable transformation. The city stands as one of the world’s leading models for environmental rejuvenation and sustainable urban development, which the Chief Minister seeks to adopt in Telangana.
The Kitakyushu city government took the Chief Minister and his delegation on a study tour of the river museum to showcase the river restoration project. The delegation also went on a guided riverfront walk and visited industrial recycling facilities to gain insights into global technologies and best practices in the circular economy, the release added.
The Chief Minister and Takeuchi discussed development activities, including building an Indian-style eco-town, powering digital talent exchange, exploring direct flights connecting Hyderabad and Kitakyushu and strengthening ties toward a sister city partnership.
Revanth Reddy sought a Japanese school to be set up in Hyderabad. “You are facing a demographic problem where you need young people who can take on various roles. We have people with skills but one crucial gap is our people have to learn the Japanese language.”
After giving a ceremonial welcome to the Chief Minister and his team at the historic Kokura Castle, the event featuring Samurai sword warriors and Taiko drum beats, the Mayor explained Kitakyushu’s policies and implementation of recycling innovations.
Takeuchi said the Kitakyushu government and companies would be delighted to work with Hyderabad and Telangana to share their knowledge, processes, tech and experiences to help Telangana on a rapid journey towards the highest levels of environmental engineering, safety and restoration.
“As we witnessed the agreement between firms like EX Research Institute, P9 LLC, Nippon Steel Engineering, New Chemical Trading, and Amita Holdings, we realised how strong our friendship is. Since today is a special day for Kitakyushu and Hyderabad — two good friends — I agree it is indeed time for exploring Mayor Takeuchi’s idea of a sister city agreement,” Revanth Reddy said.
Industries minister Sridhar Babu explained the growth and transformational plans for Telangana and the opportunities for Japanese firms to invest across industries. “When you come to invest in Telangana, as our Chief Minister reiterates, you will find a friendly-government, robust infrastructure, skilled workforce, and many complete initiatives aligned with environment and green innovation. Come and grow in Telangana,” Sridhar Babu said.
