Hyderabad: Dirtied and vandalised, the popular ‘Love Hyd’ has been dismantled and shifted from Tank Bund. It will be relocated to People’s Plaza after a makeover. It had to be shifted because people who stopped to take selfies with the structure began blocking the arterial Tank Bund Road.
Defacements showed no ‘love for Hyd’
The structure, which has been damaged for months, is set to receive a make-over ahead of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES). Tank Bund and Necklace Road are both on the list of sight-seeing locations recommended for the GES delegates.
Mr Joel Davis, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Zone), says, “Over ten non-fatal accidents have been reported at this spot. Four months ago we lost a police officer who was hit by a speeding vehicle when he was crossing the road to reach the structure. Many two and four-wheelers are parked haphazardly on the main road. The nuisance is more during the late hours.”
The Buddha Purnima Wing of the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority was responsible for the identification of a new location for the structure. However, it is in need of repair before it can be reinstalled.
Mr Prashant K. Lahoti, the founder of Kalakriti Art Gallery, said, “The structure has been defaced. Visitors have used nails to scribble on it, and shoe marks and stains have damaged the structure. For Independence Day this year, it was painted in the tricolour. However, it will be repainted in its original red and white colours now. It will be installed at a height at People’s Plaza so that people don’t climb on it. The new location will be away from the road, such that no nuisance is caused. The cost of the repairs is yet to be estimated.”
