TS seeks transfer of defence land to state to construct alternate roads

Hyderabad: Telangana chief secretary Somesh Kumar on Thursday met defence secretary A. Giridhar and requested the defence lands be transferred to the state government for the construction of alternative roads. Defence lands in AOC, Secunderabad Cantonment Board, have become a contentious issue as the residents are upset with the closure of 21 roads. The issue has been raised at several meetings between the Centre and the state, but till date, there has been no resolution.

The residents under the umbrella group of the Federation of North Eastern Colonies of Secunderabad have been raising the issue of closed roads and lack of connectivity to the main city but to no avail. Regarding the state's proposal to develop alternate roads in the Cantonment area, the Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) have strongly objected to the term "alternative" and demanded the state government create additional roads.

AOC roads are a lifeline for residents living in the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) area as they connect the area to the rest of the city. "To demand an alternative for closing any road is not the solution. We need additional roads in this area and better connectivity," over 20 RWAs recently wrote in a letter to SCB.

Elevated corridors to link roads

Chief secretary Somesh Kumar brought to the notice of the Union defence secretary that the requirement of defence lands is for the construction of elevated corridors, the formation of link roads, and the widening of roads in various parts of the state.

A skywalk is planned at Mehdipatnam and permission for the same was sought. Similarly, connecting the northeastern part of Secunderabad to the main city requires elevated corridors and link roads. For this reason, defence lands are required, Mr. Kumar explained.

Residents are facing hardships daily as vehicular movement has increased and there is also a lot of residential and commercial development in this part of the city.