GHMC Hyderabad knocked down 32 Under Construction Sites in Ayyappa Society
Residents of Ayyappa Society at Madhapur woke up to a chaotic Monday morning. Over 700 police personnel were stationed at the site to deal with any trouble, as plot owners/builders opposed the demolitions. The demolitions brought traffic at Madhapur market area to a standstill. Other roads leading to the society were also closed by the police.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) officials present at the site said that they will ensure there was not a single illegal construction left once the demolition drive was over. “As of now all the under construction sites are being demolished. The policy decision regarding the illegal constructed sites is yet to be taken,” GHMC chief city planner G V Raghu said. GHMC knocked down 32 under construction sites. The 140-acre land of the society is one of the many controversial sites in the city, where there has been a rash of construction work, much of which is now being seen as illegal.
Countering the roars of the bulldozers were the plot owners/builders who cried hoarse and alleged that the demolitions were unwarranted. They alleged that GHMC officials had allowed them to start the construction work and lay the slabs, each time charging them anywhere between Rs 25,000 and Rs two lakhs per slab. They further said that this way, it was not only the under construction sites but the total 140 acres of land in Ayyappa society that houses 1,215 plots, 365 buildings that have come up here are all illegal.
Adding to the commotion were scenes of land owners/builders collapsing. “My friend owned this land since 1982, but he started the construction six months ago after collecting money to invest in the construction. He was here since morning, but looking at the condition of his property he fainted and has been taken to the hospital,” said Rama Raju speaking of his friend whose three-storey building was pulled down at around 11 am. Kalvakuntla Kavitha, TRS chief K Chandrashekar Rao’s daughter, also tried to protest against the demolition but was soon arrested by the police and was taken to the Madhapur Police Station. She was released in a couple of hours.
“It is an endowment land and no building can be regularized in this area under the building penalization scheme or the layout regularization scheme. Any construction in this area is absolutely illegal,” said a resident, who owns land here. The land has been under dispute for the past few years with cases pending with the High Court and the Supreme Court.
Ayyappa Society, Ayyappa Society Hyderabad, Builders, Building penalization scheme, Endowment land, GHMC, GHMC Hyderabad, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Hyderabad, Illegal Construction, land owners, Madhapur Hyderabad, Under Construction Sites
