SC halts all activities on controversial 400-acre Kancha Gachibowli land

In Hyderabad, all activities were stopped at the controversial 400-acre land at Kancha Gachibowli following the directions from the Supreme Court yesterday. The Supreme Court directed that no activity of any sort, except for the protection of trees, should be undertaken by the state government in the land parcel next to the University of Hyderabad. Calling tree felling in the state a “very serious matter”, a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih said the interim report placed before it by the registrar of the Telangana High Court depicted an “alarming picture”. 

The report indicated to the court that a huge number of trees were felled. The bench asked the chief secretary of Telangana to answer on the compelling urgency for the state to have undertaken the developmental activities, including the removal of trees. The Chief



Secretary was further directed to respond on whether the state had obtained the environmental impact assessment certificate for such activities. The bench posted the hearing on April 16.

Meanwhile, the Telangana High Court has posted the hearing in the case about the dispute over a 400-acre land parcel adjacent to the University of Hyderabad to the 7th of this month. The High Court directed the state government to file its replies, including an interlocutory application filed by senior advocate S Niranjana Reddy, which stated that a UoH student attempting to take pictures at the disputed site was detained by the police. Telangana’s plans to develop IT infrastructure on the 400-acre land have sparked protests from UoH student groups, while both the BJP and BRS oppose the state government’s move.