The demolished N-Convention Centre near Hitech City in Madhapur, Hyderabd, on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL
Nagarjuna Akkineni | Photo Credit: File photo
In one of its most dramatic actions since its creation on July 17, 2024, the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Assets Monitoring and Protection agency (HYDRAA) razed the N-Convention Centre in Madhapur on Saturday morning. Its ancillary structures were also razed by officials who threw a security dragnet at the site while carrying on the demolition.
N-Convention, which has seen some high-profile weddings and events, is managed by N3 Enterprises and is jointly owned by actor/producer Nagarjuna Akkineni and Nalla Preetham.
As the word of demolition spread, residents of the surrounding areas tried to get a closer look only to be shooed away by security and police personnel guarding the site. Most of the structures were razed by 11 a.m, before the actor could secure an interim stay order from the High Court. The convention centre was allegedly built within the full tank level (FTL) of Tammidikunta lake. The blockage of water flow from the lake had led to frequent flooding on the 100-feet road, Ayyappa Colony and other areas in the catchment area of the lake.
Demolition unlawful: Nagarjuna
Calling the action of demolition as ‘unlawful’, actor Nagarjuna took to ‘X’ formerly Twitter, and wrote that he will take the issue to court to seek appropriate relief. “Today clearly the demolition was carried out on wrongful based misinformation,” he wrote.
Later in the evening, the civic agency responsible for the action released a statement. “HYDRAA, GHMC, Town Planning, Irrigation and Revenue department officials removed encroachments in the FTL/Buffer zones of Tammidikunta Cheruvu, Khanamet village, Madhapur, Hyderabad,” said the Commissioner in a statement.
“Due to the unchecked encroachments in and around Tammidikunta Cheruvu and the connecting nalas, the area around Madhapur, HiTex are facing serious waterlogging issues. The lower reaches of the Tammidikunta Cheruvu are being inundated during heavy rains regularly as the cheruvu capacity to hold water has shrunk by more then 50 – 60%,” said the two-page statement which clarified the legal position of the site.
“N-Convention has been clearly manipulating the systems and process and continuing their commercial activity through the unauthorised structures built in the FTL and buffer zones,” said the statement.
The N-Convention Centre advertised itself as a ‘one-stop destination for every occasion’. The main hall is a 27,000 square feet facility that used to seat up to 3,000 persons. It had a 26,000 square feet open air venue called Banyan.
