Road closure: Residents of Secunderabad Cant seek help of Hyd CP C.V Anand

Hyderabad: Days after the protest, members of Secunderabad Cantonments Citizens Welfare Association (SCCiWA) and Federation of North Eastern Colonies of Secunderabad (FNECS) informed C.V Anand, Hyderabad commissioner of police, about the difficulties caused due to the closure of 20 public roads by Local Military Authorities (LMA).

In an in-person meeting with the commissioner on Tuesday, the residents pointed out that the recent road closure notice issued by the Secunderabad Cantonment Board is misleading because the six roads mentioned in the notice have been closed for several years. Members of SCCiWA and FNECS told him that the notice seems to be designed to hide the fact that cantonment authorities and local military authorities did not obey the ministry of defence and Army headquarters orders of May 2018 to reopen the roads.

Members requested the commissioner to take up the matter and reopen the roads so that citizens can be relieved of the extended travel. Though the issue is not under the purview of the law and order police, the commissioner assured them that the police department will try to help resolve the matter.

It is to recall that, Secunderabad Cantonment Board has issued a notice that six of the roads will be permanently closed and the public will not be able to use them. The notice also called for suggestions or any objection regarding the closure.

The roads mentioned in the notice include Ammuguda Road (500 meters), Byam Road (500 meters), Albain Road (700 meters), Empress Road (900 meters), Protence Road (500 meters), and Richardson Road (300 meters). "Any person having any objection/suggestion on the closure notice to be forwarded the same to the office of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board within 21 days from the date of publication of this notice," read the letter.

Interestingly, the six roads are already closed, said residents. They feel that the notice is a blatant attempt to whitewash past illegalities. According to them, 21 roads including the six mentioned in the notice were illegally closed.

"All the roads mentioned in the notice issued by the Secunderabad Cantonment Board are already closed. Then why this notice for closing them again?" asked C.S. Chandrasekhar, secretary of the Federation of North Eastern Colonies of Secunderabad (FNECS).

"This notice is an attempt to pretend that these six roads are still open and the procedure of September 2018 is now being followed to close them for the first time," he added.

Residents said due to the closure of these roads, they are facing huge problems. "Ammuguda Road, Byam Road, Protence Road, and Richardson Road are lifelines connecting Bolarum and Alwal to Yapral, Balajinagar, and Sainikpuri. Students, senior citizens, and commuters are hard hit by their closure. The distance to Loyola Academy, St Anns, Trinity Church, Cantonment Hospital, and Lakdawala Bus Stop has gone up by many kilometers from the Yapral side. The same is the case with Valerian, Indus, KV, and Bhavans schools from Bolarum and Alwal side. RTC buses and share autos are barred on these roads," said Chandrasekhar.

Residents said walls have been built across Ammuguda Road and Richardson Road. According to the residents, Albain Road and Empress Road are used by students in the Trimulgherry area to reach their schools in the Lal Bazar area.