HYDERABAD: In apparently a breach of govt order (GO) 111 prohibiting construction around catchment area of Gandipet lake, many convention centres are being built in the area. The issue has been flagged by the Forum for Good Governance (FGG), which said that the Narsingi Municipality has been giving evasive replies to Right to Information (RTI) application seeking information on permission status for these convention centres.“Records do not exist” was the cryptic response by the municipality on whether Neo Convention, Aarya Convention and K Convention applied for or received permission for construction, the FGG said.
In its written reply, the Narsingi Municipality stated: “It is to inform that as per the available records, the said constructions were completed way back in the then gram panchayaths and the building permission details are not handed over to Narsingi Municipality during the merging.”FGG flags violationsIn a letter addressed to chief minister A Revanth Reddy, the FGG raised serious objections to the construction of these facilities within 500 metres of the Gandipet lake in violation of GO 111. The letter signed by FGG president M Padmanabha Reddy pointed out that while some of the convention centres were already operational for over a year, others were still under construction. The forum also included maps and photographs of the sites located in Zanwada village of Shankarpally mandal. “The gram panchayat of Zanwada has said that nobody approached them and no permission to any construction of convention centres was given,” the letter to the CM read. FGG also questioned the absence of house numbers or property tax records for the buildings. “If they were constructed long back, there should have been proper house numbers and regular property tax should have been collected,” the letter stated.CM intervention soughtFGG urged the CM to initiate a detailed inquiry into the matter, identify officials who allowed the construction to proceed without due process and demolish all illegal structures near the lake. The forum stressed the need to protect Gandipet lake ecosystem and uphold the norms set out in GO 111.
