Mounted police officials along riding horses during their morning exercise routine at the Horse Riding Ground right next to the Mounted Police Headquarters in Goshamahal, in Hyderabad. File
| Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL
Hyderabad’s iconic mounted police unit is set for a major move from its 75-year-old home in Goshamahal as the site makes way for the expansion of Osmania General Hospital. Spread across 2.5 acres along Goshamahal’s main road, this facility—featuring a stable and a racing ground—has long been the heart of Telangana’s mounted police force.
The new facility, likely to be constructed in a two-acre land parcel to the right of Shiv Kumar Lal Police Stadium in the same locality, will feature 50 stables arranged in a semicircle surrounding a central riding ground measuring 400 feet in length and 100 feet in width, an official close to the development shared.
With this, the entire strength of 50 horses – including 31 housed in the Goshamahal stable and 19 in Masab Tank stable – will be brought together under one roof.
Unlike the current site, where walls separate the horses, the new design of the stables will allow them to see and interact with each other, ensuring better well-being and ventilation, said Assistant Reserve Sub-Inspector (ARSI) Pruthvi Singh, who has overseen the mounted unit for over four decades. This is a big step forward for our horses’ welfare.
As per the initial plan, the upgraded facility will also feature accommodation for handlers and riders on a floor above the stables, owing to a relatively smaller area. A swimming pool, a drinking water hose capable of serving 12 horses at once, and dedicated spaces for feed storage and mixing are among other amenities requested by the mounted police staff.
As part of a larger redevelopment plan, the existing structures—including the Traffic Training Institute (TTI)—will be demolished. A new Police Complex for the City Safety Wing (CSW), Home Guards, dog squad, TTI, a traffic park, and a police stadium will come up in the 11 – 11.5-acre land, said Hyderabad Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) P. Viswa Prasad. The total area is approximately 40 acres, of which about 26-28 acres have been allotted for the hospital.
With the foundation stone of the new building for Osmania General Hospital laid on Friday (January 31, 2025), construction of the new police facilities is also expected to begin soon. The plan has been approved, and the police department is waiting for the final budget documents from the Telangana Government before work can begin, another senior official informed.
Published – February 01, 2025 12:12 pm IST
