Kancha Gachibowli land issue: All you need to know about the protests in Hyderabad

Primely located urban forest

Kancha Gachibowli is one of Hyderabad’s last remaining urban forests. It is rich in biodiversity, home to numerous bird, mammal and reptile species, and beautiful rock formations.

Protests against the government’s decision to auction the land off stem from the need to preserve existing carbon sinks in the city. Urban forests such as Kancha Gachibowli help regulate local climates by providing shade, reducing temperatures, and increasing humidity.

For the government, the forest lies bang in the middle of Hyderabad’s Financial District. Auctioning the land would not only fill government coffers, but also attract potential investments of Rs 50,000 crore, and generate as many as 5 lakh jobs, the government says. Notably, the Gachibowli IT corridor is one of the most expensive localities in Hyderabad, boasting extremely high property rates.

The Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) says it has prepared a layout duly preserving rock formations including the so-called ‘Mushroom Rock’ as green spaces.

Question of ownership, status

Although the 400 acres in question were a part of the 2,300 acre parcel allotted to the UoH when it was established in 1974, legally, the state government is the sole owner of the entire land. Over the years, it has allocated pockets of land from this 2,300 acres for various purposes: constructing a bus depot, a telephone exchange, a IIIT campus, the Gachibowli sports stadium, a shooting range, etc.

The disputed 400 acres were handed over by the then united Andhra Pradesh government to a private sports management firm in 2003, only to be reclaimed in 2006 due to non-use. This triggered a lengthy legal battle, which eventually saw the SC reiterate that the Telangana government was the sole owner of the land.

But the 400 acres have never been demarcated. Nor has it been notified as a forest, even though it is a part of the UoH’s larger forest ecosystem. This is at the heart of the current issue.

Students and activists protesting against the Telangana government cite the SC’s landmark verdict in T N Godavarman Thirumulpad v Union of India (1996). The apex court had held that any land with forest cover qualifies as “forest land”, even if the land is not notified as a forest.

Save City Forest, a group of nature lovers and wildlife enthusiasts, said that any move to clear forest cover with Schedule-I species without any environmental impact assessment or environmental clearance is a grave offence under the wildlife and environmental laws.

Some have also called the government to declare the land as a National Park, something that would provide it protection from future deforestation. And this is not without precedent.

The Kasu Brahmananda Reddy National Park in Hyderabad, located between upmarket Jubilee Hills and Banjara Hills, was once a part of the Nizam’s estates. However, owing to its ecological importance to the city, the KBR National Park was taken over by the government in the 1990s, handed over to the forest department, and eventually designated as a national park.

Latest escalation, courts get involved

On March 30, the government sent at least 50 earthmovers to the UoH campus to begin clear the forested land for auction. The east campus was barricaded to keep students out.

This triggered massive protests in the campus. As many as 53 students were detained, and two others were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Several students were injured. The Students’ Union declared an indefinite strike even as the earthmovers continued with their work.

As the issue began to get national attention, two public interest litigations (PILs) were filed before the Telangana High Court. The HC on Wednesday issued an interim order directing the state government to stop the felling of trees till the next hearing the day after.

However, on Thursday morning, the SC took suo motu cognisance of the matter, and sought a ground report from the High Court registrar (judicial). The apex court on Thursday afternoon sought an explanation from the Telangana government on the “compelling urgency” for clearing the forest, and put a stay on all activities till further orders.

The SC also directed a central empowered committee to visit the site and file a report by April 16. Meanwhile, the Telangana HC has postponed the next hearing till April 7.

Hours after the SC’s stay, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy decided to constitute a ministerial group comprising ministers Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, D Sridhar Babu, and Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy. The committee will consult UoH’s executive council, joint action group (JAC), civil society groups, student delegations, and all stakeholders “to resolve and give a way forward in Kanche Gachibowli land issue”.