TG mulls ‘Sister City’ pact between Hyd & Kitakyushu

Hyderabad: In a big boost to the eco-friendly economy in Telangana, the state government signed Letters of Intent (LoIs) with leading Japanese firms in the field of circular economy, waste management, recycling and environmental restoration.
On the fourth day of Japan's visit on Sunday, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy-led delegation met with Kitakyushu City Mayor Kazuhisa Takeuchi. The Mayor made a comprehensive presentation on the successful transformation of his city, from being one of the most industrial, and polluted, to one of the cleanest, greenest and environmentally safest cities in the world over the last few decades.
On the occasion, the CM delegation entered into agreements with firms like EX Research Institute, P9 LLC, Nippon Steel Engineering, New Chemical Trading, and Amita Holdings. Revanth Reddy also welcomed the Mayor’s idea of sister city agreement between Hyderabad and Kitakyushu. “We have a strong commitment to both rapid development and jobs and wealth creation, and environmental protection and care. Sustainability is no longer a luxury nor an optional choice. We are delighted that we would be working together to establish an Eco Town in Hyderabad," the CM said.
Several ideas came up for discussion, among which, while the Japanese side sought a direct flight connecting the two cities, the Chief Minister sought a Japanese speaking school to be set up in Hyderabad. Revanth Reddy and Takeuchi also discussed a need for a mechanism to achieve time-bound goals and have regular interactions to review progress and achieve multiple goals during the collaboration.Telangana, Revanth Reddy, Eco-Friendly Economy, Japan Collaboration, Circular Economy, Hyderabad-Kitakyushu
Explaining the growth and transformational plans for Telangana and the opportunities for Japanese firms to invest across industries, State IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu said that a friendly State government, robust infrastructure, skilled workforce, and many complete initiatives aligned with environment and green innovation will help the Japanese companies to grow fast.
Earlier in the day, the official Telangana Rising delegation took a bullet train trip from Osin-Osaka to travel to Kitakyushu.
The city government team took the Chief Minister and delegation on a study trip to the river museum to showcase the restoration project and how the rejuvenation was implemented.
The delegation was also given a riverfront walk, and a tour to industrial recycling facilities for working insight into global tech and best practices in the circular economy.
Mayor Takeuchi promised that Kitakyushu government and companies are ready 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.