HYDERABAD: Tucked away in the heart of the city, the dilapidated DBR mills might seem like just another abandoned factory. But has it now turned a den for anti-social elements? After the video of a minor girl being forced to strip inside the grungy area emerged, it has been found that many youngsters have been consuming alcohol, smoking ganja and inhaling whitener on the premises for a very long time.
Try to walk through the stinking periphery of the abandoned compound littered with human and animal faeces from Ambedkar basthi, one is bound to step on broken beer bottles. Go a little further and a group of youngsters could be seen smoking ganja for the most part of the day.
The broken staircases and huge chimneys are a safe haven for miscreants to go all out on drugs, consume beer and on odd occasions like recently, abuse girls. After DBR mills were shut down a few decades ago, many have been taking to the place for illegal activities.
Speaking to Express, one of the youngsters who frequents the place says, “The guy who did all that is not a regular here. But he is a popular guy in Basheerbagh and he is known for being a thug among our circles.”
To shed more light on how the disputed land is used by miscreants, it may be noted that several locals in and around the Lower Tank Bund region frequent the place. As thick shrubs cover up the periphery, the area is immune to police vigil, giving a free hand for miscreants to take advantage of the area. “We smoke ganja here. But several others, elder to us, get their girlfriends here. Some even get prostitutes to have sex,” the youth adds.
Teach for India (TFI), an NGO that works in the region, have been attempting to rehabilitate the youth, most of whom are teenagers. “The problem is that kids are pressured to work instead of studying. This exposes them to bad influences,” says Sashank Vissa, a fellow for TFI who worked for the rehabilitation of the youth in the region.