Hyderabad: A community that was formed recently to fight against the closure of some roads in Army area, has alleged the Lakadwala Gate was closed not for security reasons but to provide peaceful environs for Army officials playing at the Bolarum golf course.
Open Secunderabad Cantonment Roads, OSCAR, comprises residents of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board areas.
On its Facebook page, OSCAR posted, “Can you think of anywhere in the country where the Army treats the citizens of this country as a security threat and secures its own areas to play golf? Yes, it can happen only in Secunderabad Cantonment area.”
A member of OSCAR pointed out that eight of the 10 roads closed by the Army was in the golf course.
These roads include Puri Singh Marg, Gen Krishna Rao Marg, Surender Marg, Cariappa Road, the road from Cantonment telephone exchange to Synergy Plaza, the road from BEPTA golf course to Lakdawala Junction, the road from BEPTA golf course to Balajinagar and the road from Navy House Circle at the junction of Puri Singh Marg and Gen Krishna Rao Marg to the Andhra Sub Area Circle near Rashtrapathi Nilayam Gate No 1.
OSCAR also posted a website link to the performance audit report on defence estates management, which was placed in the Parliament in 2011. The report raised doubts over the designation of areas which have golf courses as A1 defence land because the golf courses are visited frequently by civilians.
The report cites the Cantonment Land Administration Rules, 1937 which restricts bringing recreation grounds under A category land.
It also speaks of how the then Chief of the Army Staff in 2004 had listed golf as a sport and renamed golf courses as ‘environmental park and training area’ to retain them under A1 defence land.
This explains christening of the Bolarum golf course as Bison environmental park and training area.
Earlier OSCAR had posted a set of 20 questions which it said residents should pose GHMC elections candidates to test their knowledge on the issue of road closures.
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