Telangana: KTR urges citizens to unite, defend UoH green cover

In an open letter to citizens of the State on Sunday, Rama Rao reiterated that the BRS remains fully committed to protect the forest in Kancha Gachibowli without causing any harm to the university.

Hyderabad: BRS working president KT Rama Rao called for a united, peaceful and powerful resistance against the Telangana government’s proposed development plan over 400 acres of forest land in Kancha Gachibowli. He urged students, environmentalists and people of Telangana to come together fora joint movement to protect not just these 400 acres, but the University of Hyderabad (UoH) which the Congress government indirectly threatening to shift to the proposed Fourth City.

In an open letter to citizens of the State on Sunday, Rama Rao reiterated that the BRS remains fully committed to protect the forest in Kancha Gachibowli without causing any harm to the university. “We will ensure that no development project comes at the cost of our environment,” he asserted. He also urged the State government to reconsider its actions, respecting the Supreme Court’s directives and acting in accordance with the people’s will.

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He said the Kancha Gachibowli forest was a “thriving, breathing ecosystem” that hosts hundreds of species and acts as a buffer against climate change. He expressed concern that the current Congress government was putting ecological balance at risk under the guise of development. “The current Congress-led Telangana government has chosen to put environmental well-being on the line for the sake of selfish monetary gains. This is not progress – it is plunder,” he remarked.

The BRS working president thanked student protestors, environmental groups, journalists, and public figures for their efforts to preserve the forest cover. “The UoH students have shown extraordinary leadership and integrity in leading this peaceful movement. Your courage resilience and unwavering spirit have inspired the entire nation,” he wrote, while the State government had responded with misinformation, intimidation, and threats of campus relocation.

Rama Rao criticised the State government’s plans to convert the entire area including the university into an eco park, calling it a cover-up for land encroachment. He also raised concerned over the coercive tactics of the Congress government to relocate the university to the “non-existent” Fourth City. He charged the Revanth Reddy government with acting more like a real-estate syndicate than a public institution.

“The talk of offering alternate land and promises of funds reek of bribery, but not benevolence. This is the language of a government that has lost its moral compass,” he said.

The former Minister called out the State government for launching a campaign of misinformation, propaganda, and intimidation. He said to deflect attention from its mistakes, the government is blaming the students, casting doubt on their intentions, and even threatening to relocate the university. “This is not just an attack on a university – it is an assault on democratic values, environmental rights, and our collective conscience,” he added.

Calling the issue a test of democratic values and environmental rights, Rama Rao the fight is far from over. He urged the people of Telangana to see through the government’s manipulative narrative and join a broader citizens’ movement to preserve the city’s remaining green spaces. “If we do not stand up now, we will be answerable not only to history but to our own children,” he said.