Rangareddy: Bridge work at Shivrampally hits a roadblock as Madarsa Arch kicks up a row

Rangareddy : Amidst the ongoing controversy over the slow pace of bridge work on the Zoo Park-Aramgarh stretch, the removal of an arch at Madarsa Jamia Islamia DarulUloom in Shivrampally under Rajendra Nagar limits has raised further concerns between Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and the institution’s management.

The GHMC officials have responded to allegations of targeting religious institutions of the minority community, stating that the removal of the arch is a consensual move in accordance with the compensation agreement reached between the management and the GHMC.

“We were baffled with the attitude of the madrasa management,” said Krishna Mohan, Deputy City Planner, GHMC Rajendranagar adding that “We were informed by the higher officials and will move according to the instructions.”

Going into the details, he said, we have acquired 2,500 square yards of land from the management of MadarsaDarul-Uloom at Shivrampally in January, 2022 after paying a substantial compensation amount of Rs.11.5 crores. The management even gave a consent letter to carry out road widening after receiving the compensation.

“However, when we reached the site for inspection before removal of the arch last month, the management people from the madrasa raised objections. This was witnessed again when the GHMC town planning staff visited the site for removal of the arch two days ago, despite the fact that the management had previously agreed to its removal,” the official explained.

On the other hand, the madrasa management is accusing the government of planning to demolish the arch as part of its conspiracy to target the minority community. “The GHMC officials fixed an electric pole at the site after completing the road widening work. Now they are again planning to demolish the arch deliberately,” argued MoulanaMohd. Hussamuddin Sani Aqil also known as MoulanaJafar Pasha Hussami.

Meanwhile, the slow pace of bridge work between Zoo Park and Aramgarh stretch on the busy National Highway-44 continues to cause immense inconvenience for the commuters. The bridge work was grounded in the year 2021 and yet not completed while the civic body officials are attributing several issues to the delay.

Lashing out at the GHMC for causing inconvenience to the commuters, Syed Mushtaq, a community activist said “The pothole filled road with crusher stones strewn all the way on the stretch is giving the commuters a rough ride while the air filled with dust and debris on the wayside poses a grave danger to their lives. Also, the bridge work is being carried out precariously and in a negligent manner by the workers that resulted in several accidents in recent days.”

Mushtaq has criticized the civic body for putting taxpayers' money to work while putting the life of commuters into jeopardy.