Secunderabad Cantonment residents fret as LMA ignores MoD orders

Hyderabad: With the Defence Minister in town, residents of the Secunderabad Cantonment have once again pointed out that orders issued by the Ministry of Defence in 2018 with regard to closure of roads in the Cantonment were yet to be implemented.

In the orders issued on September 4, 2018, the MoD had pointed out that it was ‘absolutely essential’ to follow procedures prescribed in Section 258 of the Cantonments Act, 2006.

“No public road in the Cantonments shall be closed by the Local Military Authority (LMA) without following due procedure,” it had said.

The procedures included publishing notices in at least three local newspapers carrying information about closure of any road and on the website of the Cantonment inviting claims, objections and suggestions from the local public. After considering these, the proposed order would have to be forwarded to the Ministry of Defence for vetting and a final order would have to be published again in the same manner.

However, residents including members of the Federation of Northeastern Colonies of Secunderabad pointed out that roads were still getting closed illegally, without following the procedure, and these actions were going unquestioned by the MoD.

Central Ministers and the Defence Minister, who were in town, should answer as to why they were ignoring the non-implementation of the orders, they demanded.

‘Utter callousness’

They also pointed out the ‘utter callousness’ of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board when it came to ensuring basic civic amenities including streetlights on several major thoroughfares, including the All Saints Road. They also pointed out that the roads were narrow apart from being in pathetic condition, including the Roberts Road leading to the Army School and the road from Ammuguda Railway Gate to Asha Officers Colony, to mention just two of several.