Army families hurt over KTR’s threats to cut power, water supplies

Hyderabad: Army personnel and their families stationed in Secunderabad cantonment are dismayed with municipal administration and urban development minister K.T. Rama Rao for his threat to disconnect water and power supply in defence areas, top defence sources have said.

The minister had on Saturday warned that the state government would take serious action if local military authority (LMA) continues to block roads in the cantonment limits and creates hurdles for development works planned by the government.

The LMA perceives the government’s allegations as part of its confrontation with the Centre, which has been taken to the next level by Rao, sources added. Living without regular power and water supplies will be a serious setback to military personnel and their families who seek a peaceful stay before being sent to borders to protect the country's territorial integrity, sources told Deccan Chronicle.

They said they were surprised at the minister’s ‘unsubstantiated’ allegations against the army. “There has been no road closure in the recent past nor were there any complaints in this regard,” they said.

LMA has not placed any impediments in the state government’s strategic road development programme (SRDP), sources pointed out. Defence authorities have so far not received any such proposal, despite the LMA repeatedly seeking SRDP details, the sources explained.

Reportedly a meeting between the GOC of Dakshin Bharat area and the minister is in the offing. It is aimed at clearing ‘misapprehensions’ about the army’s activities.

The sources recalled that army personnel were in the forefront across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh helping citizens when Covid-19 was at its peak. The efforts of the army personnel in saving lives of over 500 citizens from the 2020 floods is still fresh in the memory of people of Telangana, sources added.