HYDERABAD: The demolition of old buidings of Telangana Secretariat started in the early hours of Tuesday and the work started with the D block. The old Secretariat, that houses 10 blocks, is in a delapidated state. 

The construction of the new Secretariat building, the design for which was released by the CMO office on Tuesday, will commence in the auspicious Sravana Masam that falls in the third week of July. 

The CMO said the design may be approved shortly. 

It may be recalled that some of the blocks in the old Secretariat were built by the Nizams. Stalwarts like Boorgula Ramakrishna Rao, NT Rama Rao, Marri Chenna Reddy discahrged duties as chief ministers of the erstwhile state of Andhra Pradesh from the old Secretariat.

However, after the formation of Telangana in June 2014, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao functioned from Secretariat for some days before shifting his base to his camp office in Pragathi Bhavan. 

The reason for demolition of old Secretariat buildings is that some of the blocks are in dilapidated condition. Also some of the newly constructed blocks are not following any safety measures. In case of  a major fire, the staff or visitors willnot be able to escape. 

Old buildings of Telangana Secretariat being demolished in Hyderabad on Tuesday.@XpressHyderabad @KrishnaRaoCHVM pic.twitter.com/r1Tneyabte

— R V K Rao (@RVKRao2) July 7, 2020

CM K Chandrasekhar Rao's strong belief in Vastu Sastra is another reason. 

The ten blocks of the old Secretariat are scattered across 25 acres, flouting Vastu norms, forcing Rao to construct a new complex. The estimated cost of the new building is Rs 400 crore and it will take around one year to get completed.