Religious structures, a big hurdle for Metro project Encroachment by shrines in city

Religious structures on pavement edges continue to haunt the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation every year. Though the authorities are armed with the Supreme Court directions to relocate these structures, officials said the job was easier said than done.

While the civic body had found it tough to shift the shrines in the past during normal conditions, officials said now it would be even more difficult as the atmosphere was far from conducive in the aftermath of the Bhagyalakshmi temple controversy and the fallout of the recent “hate speech”.

However, they said check- There are 200 shrines on kerbsides and footpaths 150 places of worship are in parks or open spaces meant for parks 7,492 square yards have temples. 3,042 square yards of GHMC have mosques or chillas 759 square yards are occupied by churches. ing installation of new statues and realigning existing ones according to road width was not that difficult.

In all, there are about 600 religious structures dotting the main roads, inner streets, open spaces, parks and other government land. Of the total, 50 are on the three corridors of the `15,000-crore Hyderabad Metro Rail project.

In fact, metro rail pillars are likely to be erected without touching these structures. This is becacuse any move to shift the shrines would delay the project and it would throw the work into jeopardy. GHMC additional commissioner K.Dhanunjaya Reddy said they have shifted over a dozen shrines in the past few years. “It takes time to convince the religious leaders, politicos, management committees and local residents. Our negotiations with them are a continuous process.”