Jalpally civic officials deploy JCBs to raze illegal structures

Hyderabad: The Jalpally municipal authorities on Monday razed the encroachments on the nala that stretches from Pahadi Shareef to Airport road on the busy Srisailam highway under Maheshwaram constituency. The nala, built during Nizam's era from Paradise Function Hall to Osmania Hotel, was encroached upon over the years with multiple establishments mushroomed on both sides of the road up to 3 km distance.

The Hans India has hinted at possible clampdown by the Jalpally officials on its November 8 edition with the headline-- Officials Out to Rein in Illegal Structures in Jalpally Limits-- highlighting that the officials were ready to raze the unauthorised structures and were waiting for nod from higher-ups.

"There are around 250 to 300 structures on both the sides of the nala that have come up illegally. These encroachments, increased gradually over the years, are causing inundation issues on the Srisailam highway besides putting the lives of road users at risk, especially during rains, for the last 15 years. Sensing a more chaotic situation in the days to come, we began the two-day special drive to clear the encroachments on both sides of the 3km-long stretch," informed GP Kumar, Commissioner, Jalpally Municipality.

"Following the removal of encroachments, the road appearance will surely improve," the official said, adding that a proposal to illuminate the stretch with two-arm central lighting, costing Rs 36 lakh, was approved in the council meeting.

Another official on the condition of anonymity said, "As some people voluntarily removed the encroachments on the first day of the drive, we gave time till tomorrow to others to follow the same. The nala was almost filled with landfill and debris that needed more machines to complete the task. Besides clearing encroachments, we also took up removal of silt to revive the nala."