Secunderabad residents oppose Cantonment road closures, demand action

Residents in Secunderabad oppose Army's closure of public roads, demanding compensation for land and access to alternative roads.

Residents of north eastern Secunderabad have voiced opposition to the ongoing closure of public roads in the Secunderabad Cantonment area by Army authorities. The Federation of North Eastern Colonies of Secunderabad (FNECS) has raised concerns regarding the Army’s plans to establish military stations and its demand for compensation from the Telangana government for land that residents claim belongs to the State.

The conflict centres on the Secunderabad Cantonment, where the closure of multiple roads has disrupted daily life for over 20 lakh residents across three Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) circles — Malkajgiri, Alwal, and Kapra, as well as five of the eight wards under the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB). “Despite explicit directives from the Ministry of Defence prohibiting such closures, the roads remain inaccessible. The population using these roads is huge. Closure of even some of the existing roads would create havoc with traffic and put the public to untold harassment,” said C.S. Chandrashekhar, secretary of FNECS.

Military authorities are also reported to have offered land for the alternative roads, but asked the Telangana government to compensate them at commercial rates for the land. FNECS argues that additional roads could be beneficial, but not at the cost of closing existing ones. 

“All Cantonment roads are public roads. They have been public roads for over 200 years. Army authorities have no authority to close public roads. With a massive population relying on these roads, any closures would lead to severe traffic disruptions,” the Federation asserted.