HYDERABAD: A day after Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao sought action against illegal constructions, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) on Tuesday swung into action to take up demolition of unauthorised constructions coming up at Gurukul Trust lands in the prime Madhapur area.
Mr.Rao had on Monday made a specific mention about the Trust lands and wanted them to be restored from illegal occupation following which the civic body identified 21 ongoing constructions that did not have required permissions. In a coordinated operation with police and revenue officials, the demolitions commenced in the morning and heavy machinery was pressed into service to pull down the structures.
Five demolition squads were formed and each team accompanied with a contingent of police personnel fanned out to start pulling down the pillars, cellars and in some points, floors that were under construction. “We have so far identified 21 ongoing illegal constructions and action is initiated against them. An exercise to identify more is on and similar action will be taken against them also,” said Chief City Planner G.V.Raghu.
Officials maintain that they had been keeping illegal constructions here under check for the last couple of years. However, during the recent elections, when the GHMC machinery was busy with conduct of polls, some persons had started construction. “These builders used the opportunity of election time and surreptitiously started works,” revealed an official.
The Gurukul Trust lands said to be spread over 627 acres here have been entangled in disputes for long over titles and apart from the Trust, had the involvement of revenue department and endowments department. “The dispute over title of these lands has been going on for long, but as far as the GHMC is concerned, the issue is constructions taken up without permission and we will act against them,” he said.
It is estimated that around 550 buildings have come up and some are occupied too. “Demolitions of ongoing constructions are being taken up and higher-ups permission will be taken up on those already constructed and occupied,” another official said.
GHMC West Zone Commissioner Aleem Basha said there was no major resistance to the demolition initiative and enough teams of police along with civic body officials were on the spot. Serilingampally MLA, A.Gandhi, who came to the site, and tried to dissuade officials from demolitions was promptly arrested by the police. The GHMC Commissioner, Somesh Kumar, along with senior officials supervised the demolition works in the morning.
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GHMC Commissioner Somesh Kumar on Tuesday morning issued directions to stop all ongoing constructions in the Gurukul Trust lands and demolish those under construction.
Noting that the State government had taken a serious view of the illegal constructions in the land belonging to Gurukul Ghatkesar Trust, he ordered that one demolition squad along with required paraphernalia be made available round-the-clock to check the buildings and ensure no unauthorised buildings come up.
The orders also mention that letters were already addressed to CPCDCL and HMWSSB seeking that no electricity or water and sewerage connections be given for the buildings at Ayyappa Society and asked the West Zone Commissioner to coordinate with these departments.
