HYDERABAD: While the State and Central government are talking about 24X7 power supply and electrification of all villages across India respectively, all hopes of getting power supply has been dashed for Dr BR Ambedkar huts, a slum of 400 families in Mudfort under Secunderabad Cantonment Board(SCB), that has been living without electricity for more than two decades.
A letter by the Defence Estates Officer Telangana and Andhra Pradesh circle(DEO T&AP circle), Secunderabad requesting power department not to supply electricity to the slum dwellers as it is located on encroached Defence land, has become the obstacle in the provision of electricity to Dr BR Ambedkar Huts.
As per a letter dated May 23, which is in possession of Express, the Chief General Manager(CGM) Commercial, TSSPDCL wrote to the Superintending Engineer, TSSPDCL, Secunderabad, saying that the DEO T&AP circle, Secunderabad has requested TSSPDCL not to provide electrical connections to slum dwellers of Dr BR Ambedkar huts, as the slum is located on encroached land which belongs to Ministry of Defence.
Further, the CGM also asked for a detailed report immediately from the Superintending Engineer, Secunderabad for taking further action. The detailed report was submitted last week. When asked regarding contents of the detailed report, a TSSPDCL official said, “We wrote to SCB saying that they need to get a No Objection Certificate from the Defence Estates Officer, if electricity connections have to be sup[plied to houses in Dr BR Ambedkar huts as the slum is located on encroached defence land. The same was conveyed to the TSSPDCL CGM in the detailed report.”
The slum-dwellers there are in possession of electoral photo ID cards, Aadhaar cards and ration cards bearing house numbers on them.
When contacted, B Anitha, elected member of Ward-3, SCB, said, “The power department agreed to supply power in the area, defence officials are not allowing them to supply power as the huts are located on encroached defence land. However, SCB is supplying water through borewell in the area and has also provided public bio-toilets.”