For days, the University of Hyderabad campus in Telangana looked like a conflict zone. A large troop of police, deployed by the State government, tackled students protesting the destruction of an adjacent 400-acre urban “forest” in the Kancha Gachibowli village, Rangareddy district.
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| Credit - Ai |
The face-off between the students and the State Congress government began early last month when news reports emerged that the Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) had been given the green flag to develop and auction this biodiverse land parcel. In fact, the land once belonged to the university, and was once a grazing land (“kancha” is the Telugu word for grazing land). Protesters pointed out that the project would claim a rare patch of green cover in the city.
But after relentless campaigning by students (many of whom were lathi charged and even detained), teachers, and civil society, the Supreme Court, on April 3, took suo moto cognisance of the matter and directed the Chief Secretary of Telangana to ensure that “no tree felling” takes place. The court asked the Chief Secretary to file answers on “the compelling urgency to undertake this developmental activity;” and whether the State had conducted an environmental impact assessment. It added that no activity is permitted, besides the “protection of trees already existing,” until further orders. The Chief Secretary would be held liable for any violations, the Supreme Court added.
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But the destruction of this green cover has already been devastating. By mid-march, earthmovers began digging up the plot, and on March 30, dozens of bulldozers converged on the site. Despite the public outcry and student protests, tree felling continued. While an official assessment of the destruction is yet to take place, “A preliminary estimate that several of us have arrived at is that over 10,000 trees of the over 17,700 trees in the 400-acre parcel have already been cut,” said Sai Krishna, a GIS analyst.
Haven to 220 species of birds Save City Forest, a collective of citizens, nature lovers, and university alumni, has also been working relentlessly to save Kancha Gachibowli. It has found documentation indicating that this urban jungle is habitat to over 734 species of flowering plants, 10 species of mammals, 15 species of reptiles, and 220 species of birds. The collective said that the “dangerous and unsustainable trajectory [of] continued destruction of natural ecosystems will lead to severe water crisis, poor air quality, rising temperatures, ultimately making living in Rangareddy district, particularly Gachibowli, unliveable for future generations.”
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