Hyderabad: Birds Cry as Bulldozers Clear 400 Acres of Forest
A big protest has started in Telangana as students and environmentalists oppose the clearing of 400 acres of forest land near Hyderabad Central University for IT park development.
A major controversy has started in Telangana over the clearing of around 400 acres of forest land near Hyderabad Central University (HCU), in Kancha Gachibowli. The Telangana government wants to use the land to build IT parks, which it claims will bring ?50,000 crore investments and create 5 lakh jobs.
However, students and environmentalists are strongly protesting. They say this land is part of a natural forest with 455 species of plants and animals, including peacocks, lakes, and mushroom rocks. The land is also claimed by Hyderabad Central University, which says it was allotted to them in 1975.
The government denies this, saying there is no legal document proving it. The High Court also said in 2022 that the land legally belongs to the government. The area is officially listed as Kancha Poramboke – which means it is waste or grazing land, not forest land.
Things became tense on 30th March 2025, when bulldozers arrived to flatten the land. Students started protesting and boycotted classes, raising slogans like “Ladenge Jeetenge” and “Police go back.”
Police were deployed on campus. Over 50 students were detained, and a few were injured. Police have denied using force. Celebrities and social media users came out in support of the students.
The students are demanding transparency in land documents, and a written promise from the university that it will fight to keep the land.
Politically, the issue has turned into a big fight. BRS leader KTR blamed the Congress government for cutting down the city’s “green lungs.” The Congress government said the land was given to a private company earlier and the Supreme Court later gave it back to the state. They say the new project will support both development and environment.
On 1st April, students filed a case in the High Court, and later the Supreme Court took up the matter on its own and put a temporary stop on all land-clearing activities.
