Those Cursing Modi Govt . Are Now Building idols by Spending 1000 Crores

The Modi government at the center has spent 1000 crore on constructions like the State of Unity, New Parliament, New Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate, and Ram Mandir, and now the same Telangana government has spent 1000 crore on Ambedkar Secretariat ₹616 crores, Ambedkar statue ₹147 crores and Telangana Martyr’s Memorial is being built for ₹ 178 crores, development happens through construction, which should happen in every state, but how right is politics over development for politics?

BNITIMES.COM Reported by bureau news  Edited by Vishal Sharma Updated: February 15, 2023 15:25 pm IST

It is a ₹1000 crore splash that has transformed the Hussainsagar and Necklace road promenade into a visual spectacle for Hyderabad. The ₹616 crore Secretariat, ₹147 crore Ambedkar statue and a ₹178 crore Telangana Martyrs Memorial have changed the skyline of the core area of the city.

What used to be a bunch of trees, walls, and gates is now a shiny shimmering ball of steel. On January 26, when the Burgula Ramakrishna Bhavan was lit up for Republic Day, passers-by could not but stop to click a photograph of the building reflected on the mirrored surface of the martyrs memorial. While earlier, people would stop to look at the Buddha Statue and the massive Tricolour fluttering at a distance, now these buildings covered with scaffolding are the centre of attention. “Most people are stopping on the side of the road to click photographs. Very few people lose track of the place they are in and I force them to move on,” said a traffic constable at the junction which has traffic restrictions for the Formula-E race.

It’s become a routine now. Get on to the terrace before going home. Watch the progress and click photographs in the setting sun,” says a Secretariat employee unwilling to go on record. 

“Change and development is inevitable in any growing city, especially one as dynamic as Hyderabad. I believe a metropolitan city must evolve and adapt to its changing needs, and reflect the ethos of its people, place and time,” says Takbir Fatima, an architect who has documented the skyline of Hyderabad for the past two decades.

Hyderabad is not a tabula rasa. Intervention in the built environment will inevitably be coloured by its existing architectural heritage. Hussainsagar in particular has its own ecosystem and natural balance, something that was meticulously crafted when the reservoir was first built. I believe respect for the built and natural environment must be a fundamental criteria for any intervention around the lake,” she says.

While the visual spectacle is wowing citizens, the change in land use of the space is not going unnoticed.

“The NTR Park was a huge draw among citizens. People would come in buses from districts for the park and loiter in the area taking in the sights and sounds of the city. The statue in the park will change that. It will kill the space,” says architect Shankar Narayan who works in the interface of public and private spaces.

“This is another nail in the coffin for Hussainsagar lake where the famous dead are given samadhis,” he says without hiding his disappointment at the loss of park space for a statue.