Huge task on hand for forest officials to restore Kancha Gachibowli land

Considering the current situation, it would take at least five to six years for trees to come up and improve green cover, officials said

Hyderabad: After the Supreme Court’s strong warning to the State government against felling of trees in Kancha Gachibowli and instructions to prepare a restoration plan, a team of forest officials inspected the lands to draw up plans for the regeneration of trees and protection of wild animals.

However, the department is facing major challenges, including the relocation of street dogs to achieve these tasks. Considering the current situation at Kancha Gachibowli, it would take at least five to six years for trees to come up and improve green cover, a forest official said.

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The rootstock was intact in the vast area of the lands, and in the monsoon, it would help in the faster growth of trees. But to further expedite green cover increase, extensive gap plantations would have to be taken up with available local species, as planting non-local species trees could spell more trouble for the ecosystem, the official said.

Another major challenge was addressing the street dog menace. There are many street dogs in Kancha Gachibowli and neighbouring areas. There have been several instances of these dogs attacking spotted deer. After the recent destruction, a couple more such incidents had been reported from the area.

Chief Secretary A Shanti Kumari, in her compliance affidavit, had said there were free-ranging deer present within the University of Hyderabad. As there was no fencing between the subject land and the university land, there was a possibility of these deer straying into the subject land.

Some animals like deer, peacock, and other birds were occasionally found to be straying into the vegetation, the Chief Secretary had said in the affidavit.

Further, the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) constituted by the Supreme Court in its report mentioned about a letter dated April 11, 2025 from the Chief Wildlife Warden, Telangana in which it was stated that 64 cases of rescue, injury, and death of spotted deer at University of Hyderabad were reported from 2013 to 2025.

These cases related to injuries to spotted deer were due to street dogs, the report said.

Referring to the same, the senior forest official said the street dogs could not be killed and that they would have to be relocated to other places. In the past, there have been several instances of spotted deer getting injured badly after being attacked by dogs. They were shifted to the Nehru Zoo Park and received extended treatment, the official said.

“We will have to seek the help of GHMC, NGOs, and Blue Cross in addressing the street dog issue. We will have to sensitise the residents about relocation of street dogs, and all these works can be challenging,” the official said.