Deccan Chronicle 02.06.2010
HC’s orders ignored, shrines stay on roads
Hyderabad, June 1: Despite giving an undertaking to the Andhra Pradesh High Court, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has not removed a single religious structure obstructing traffic on main roads in the last three months. The civic body has, instead, re-constructed a couple of shrines that were damaged in accidents.
GHMC officials had planned to shift the places of worship in three phases. As many as 621 structures had been identified, including 200 in the old city. These shrines were to be either removed or relocated.
In phase-I, 25 structures were to be relocated by March 31, another 86 by July in phase-II and the remaining 510 in phase-III for which no time-frame had been fixed, as a majority of them are in existence for a long time.
The civic body has failed to keep up with even the phase-I deadline of March 31 and officials said they were seeking more time from the High Court, as the process of relocating the shrines required several rounds of negotiations with the management committees of the shrines and local leaders.
When contacted, the GHMC additional commissioner, Mr K. Dhanunjaya Reddy, said the assistant city planners and other officials were holding talks with the management committees for relocation of the places of worship.
“We will comply with the High Court directives. We are holding negotiations regularly with the stake-holders, local leaders and those managing the religious structures. We are confident of persuading them to agree to relocate the structures,” he said.
