Defence officials not keen on handing over land to Telangana government
Hyderabad: Although the Union Defence Ministry is positively considering the Telangana government’s request to hand it over a portion of Parade Ground and its extensions (Gymkhana and Bison Polo), which totals around 100 acres, local Defence officials have stated that they will try to impress upon the higher-ups in New Delhi to retain some part of the land for parade and training activities of Army personnel.
According to historians, the entire land parcel was known as Parade Ground right from early 1800 AD till Independence, after which it came under Secunderabad Cantonment. Later, Bison Polo, Gymkhana and Race Course (that was later shifted to Malakpet) became part of it. At present, Bison Polo and Gymkhana occupy 60 acres and the leftover land of nearly 37.6 acres is called Parade Ground.
Army officials stated that various divisions in Secunderabad like AoC, EME, Infantry and Signals have their own open spaces, but the entry is restricted for others unlike Parade Ground. Other than the Army, the NCC and civilians have access to Parade Ground. “Also, all other Army divisions in Secunderabad can use Parade Ground facility for their activities without much problem. If that space is deprived, soldiers of a particular Army division have to be confined to whatever spaces they have or they should go to an alternative location given by the Telangana government, in lieu of Parade Ground, for practice and training purposes,” an Army official said, adding that not only Army, even general public would be affected.
However, it is learnt that Defence officials working here are not in favour of allotment of the whole land parcel. They want to impress upon the Union Defence Ministry to leave 30 to 40 acres so that Army, NCC and civilians could utilise it for training and recreational activities. Meanwhile, Telangana government officials stated that they are not seeking the entire Parade Ground area for construction of new Secretariat. They said 60 acres was enough for the government and the remaining area could be used for parade and other training purposes as is being done currently.
