Opposing the State Government’s move to decrease the eco-sensitive zone around KBR Park in Banjara Hills, walkers and civil society activists protested outside the Secretariat on Saturday. The protesters under the banner of Hyderabad Rising, who have been vehemently opposing the Strategic Road Development Plan (SRDP) for which the walkway will be acquired as per the plan, took their battle to the seat of administration. Armed with placards, the protesting members raised slogans to highlight their demand.
The protesters said that they want to protect the walkway in totality and want it to remain untouched.
“We have already lost about 30 acres of this national forest to build the current road around it. Over the years the width of our KBR park has already been compromised and we are left with a bare minimum to buffer the forest. Negotiating this is purely massaging our egos to explain that we have done our bit of being thoughtful. It does not serve any function whatsoever,” said Kajal of Hyderabad Rising.
The protests went on for close to an hour.
The eco-sensitive zone for the national park is between 25 m to 35 m and the state government proposes to decrease it between 3 m and 7 m for the multi-level road project.
