Demolition of old Telangana Secretariat complex begins

The demolition of the old Secretariat complex of Telangana began in Hyderabad early on Tuesday morning as the State government is apparently unwilling to give any scope for any further litigation in the matter.

Less than 10 days after the High Court cleared the way for the construction of the new Secretariat, expected to be a state-of-the-art building with a built-up area of around 6 lakh square feet, the government took up the demolition of the old complex. The razing of the structures brings to an end decades-old history of the complex which had witnessed many a political development in the erstwhile united State.

Spread over 25.5 acres, the Secretariat complex had been functioning since the early 1950s and it also houses the building (G block) from where the Nizam used to run the administration.

The Telangana Secretariat in Hyderabad.   | Photo Credit: K.V.S. GIRI

Subsequently, nine more blocks were constructed with a built-up area of 9.16 lakh sq.ft. with the D block constructed in the early 2000s alone occupying 2.46 lakh sq.ft. area. Five of these blocks — H south and north, J, K and L, with a built-up area of 5.31 lakh sq.ft. — were under the possession of the Andhra Pradesh government post-bifurcation while four blocks A, B, C and D were in control of the Telangana government.

In a friendly gesture, the Andhra Pradesh government headed by Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, handed over the buildings to Telangana which thereafter speeded up steps for demolition.