14 private parties lay claim to land that belongs to HMDA
Land near Minister's road in Hyderabad. (Photo: DC archives)
Hyderabad: Around 14 private parties are eyeing prime government land totalling 31 acres on Minister Road (opposite KIMS hospital) worth hundreds of crores of rupees.
The land is Survey no. 43 and falls under the full tank level (FTL) of the Hussainsagar lake which should be out of bounds for developers. Hyderabad collector has clearly indicated that the land belongs to the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA).
Around 26 acres of the 31 acres is under threat, as a proposal by HMDA to develop an eco-park, for which Rs 10 lakh had been sanctioned, is under a stay order.
Currently 14 parties are laying claim to the property in the AP High Court. The parties include Iftikaruddin, Shantha Bhai, Asgar Ali, Janaki Ram, Shakir, S. Khan, Narender Reddy and Khadar Baig. One Ranga Reddy from Rasoolpura is claiming 17 acres. All the people claim ownership of different portions of the land under the same Survey.
According to the civic body, in 1983, the AP government allotted 31 acres falling under Survey No. 43 of Dholakpur village to the then Hyderabad Urban Development Authority. HUDA handed over the land to the then Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad for development. But the land was handed back to HUDA in 1985 and since then the land is owned by the present HMDA.
A sewerage treatment plant for connecting Hussainsagar nala was constructed by HMDA on five acres. For the remaining land the civic body, under a project financed by the Japan International Corporation Authority (JICA), proposed to construct an eco-park for which the government had sanctioned Rs 10.68 crore in 2010. Work on the park worth Rs 1.5 crore, such as railings and bund formation, was completed in 2011.
HMDA proposed to construct three ponds for 30 MLD of treated water from the Hussainsagar to flow in, a children’s zone and 2.2 km pathway. “However, a city-based NGO approached the court and got a stay order, stating that the lake is being encroached to create a commercial centre,” said a BBP-HMDA engineer.
Private parties are now claiming the land as theirs. Also, after the laying of the track road, several workshops were illegally established on Minister Road and they have encroached on a few acres.
T. Pradyumna Kumar Reddy, advocate of the High Court, said, “Claiming government land is a criminal act unless it is assigned by the government. Any encroacher is liable for punishment; nobody can claim ownership of public property”.
( Source : dc )
Next Story
