HYDERABAD: While the proposed Outer Ring Road hitting the capital's boundaries is hogging the limelight, a small inner ring road forming outside the Charminar buffer zone is getting ready, albeit quietly.

The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad is engaged in widening the congested road stretches from Gulzar Houz-Eitabar Chowk-Royal Function Hall to 50 feet to enable smaller vehicles weave round the historic monument. Initially, MCH wanted to have a 60 feet-road but in deference to local sentiments and to minimise demolitions, it was reduced to 50 ft.

Major hurdles

Even otherwise the MCH has managed to strike a deal with 50 per cent of households to part with their lands. Some 103 properties are to get affected on the inner ring road where widths range from 20 ft to 30 ft. Fortynine properties are to be taken over on the Mitti-ka-Sher road connecting to Lad Bazaar and 18 of the 22 properties were taken over on the Panchamohalla-Khilwat road stretch. But, 14 properties opposite the Charminar police station have turned out to be major obstacles with local politicians adamant on `not touching' them though the station itself is being moved out to provide for the 45 ft road and 12 feet walkway around the historic structure.

New lease of life

The entire Charminar Pedestrianisation Project (CPP) received a new lease of life when the Charminar-Falaknuma road widening was taken up last year. Of the 260 properties on way, 120 were still to be acquired.

In toto, MCH, which took over the CPP in 2003, has managed to take more than 400 properties of the 782 that are to be affected under CPP and 55 land acquisition cases were filed. More could be in the offing.

"Road-widening, shifting of bus station and construction of multi-storeyed parking complex are harder components of CPP and we have made good progress. There is a welcome change among people too," says Additional Commissioner (Planning & Projects) K. Dhananjaya Reddy.

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