TCS Deal A Cover-Up For Massive Scam Brewing in Vizag?

A scam appears to be unfolding under the guise of the TDP-led NDA government’s decision to allocate 21 acres to technology major TCS for just 99 paise per acre.

The Chandrababu Naidu government’s "plunder, stash, and devour" policy has come to the fore once again. It has now come to light that 59 acres of premium land has been allocated to 'Ursa Clusters', a US-based data centre company registered less than two months ago in India, with no proper office, phone number, or website. The company reportedly signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with both the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments for projects worth over ₹10,000 crore. According to the MoU, Ursa Clusters plans to set up a data centre and IT campus in Visakhapatnam at an investment of ₹5,728 crore.

While publicly promoting its vision to transform Visakhapatnam into an IT hub and giving land to TCS at a token price, the coalition government allegedly will apply the same policy in its dealings with Ursa Clusters. Notably, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu recently approved, during a SIPB meeting, the allocation of 3.5 acres at IT Hill No. 3 in Madhurawada and 56.36 acres in Kapuluppada for the proposed data centre. The value of this prime land is estimated at over ₹3,000 crore — roughly ₹50 crore per acre.

Observers have raised red flags, questioning how the government could strike such deals with a company that was only registered in India two months ago and has no verifiable infrastructure. Concerns have also emerged regarding the company's official address, which an investigation by Sakshi revealed to be a residential apartment in Hyderabad.

Ursa Clusters Private Limited was registered with the Hyderabad Registrar on February 12, 2025, and was founded by Pendurthi Vijaykumar, a resident of Hyderabad. The official address provided is a 3BHK flat in Kothaguda, owned by Vijaykumar’s relative, Pendurthi Padmavathi.

Ursa Clusters LLC, the parent company of Ursa Clusters Private Limited, was reportedly registered in the United States on September 27, 2024. Vijaykumar’s son, Pendurthi Kaushik, has reportedly been appointed as acting president, although his LinkedIn profile shows he is currently working as Chief Product and Technology Officer (CPTO) at an American firm called Talus Pay. The other director, Satish Abburi, is listed as the founder and CTO of Elysium Analytics on LinkedIn.

Even in the US, the company reportedly operates out of a 1,560 sq. ft apartment, which also serves as its official address.

These revelations have further deepened suspicions about the company's credibility. It is also notable that Ursa Clusters was founded just a month before Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh visited the United States. So far, the company has reportedly paid just $300 in taxes (approximately ₹25,000).

These developments are a reminder of the IMG Bharata case — a shell company facilitated by Chandrababu Naidu in 2003. In August of that year, the Naidu-led government signed an MoU with IMG Bharata, which had been established just four days before the deal by Ahobila Rao (aka Billy Rao). Despite having no experience in sports management, the company was handed the responsibility of maintaining most of Hyderabad's stadiums (then part of united Andhra Pradesh) for a hefty annual fee. When the YS Rajasekhara Reddy government came to power in 2004, the MoU was scrapped and 850 acres of land, allocated to the company for developing sports facilities, was reclaimed.