HYDERABAD: The bustling hub of activity, Secunderabad Railway station, on an early Sunday morning is teeming with passengers, all eager to catch their trains and some loading their luggage in tow. The coolies scream at passengers to make way for them. The soundscape is dominated by a barrage of deafening announcements, blaring with sharpness and drowning the surrounding noise.
On April 8 this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of Secunderabad railway station – an ambitious project costing Rs 719 crore – aims to provide airport-like, ‘world-class’ facilities and ‘state-of-the-art’ infrastructure. With a so-called ‘facelift’, the station would no longer have its traditional Nizamesque outlook. The present building of the station was built in Art Deco architectural style, quite futuristic in itself and much ahead of its time.
“I have a personal connection with the place as I grew up here, waking up to the coo-coo of steam engines. Stations such as Secunderabad, Kachiguda and Nampally have distinct architectural identities characteristic of Hyderabad. The new design will change the interiors of the station entirely and make it look like a tin shed resembling almost any other station in India,” said Anuradha Reddy, convenor, INTACH Hyderabad.
The station was first built in 1874, connecting Hyderabad to the Indian Peninsula but the present building was finished in 1948. Initially, the station had a very small infrastructure but the new building, when completed, had characteristic Hyderabadi elements such as octagonal columns, found in Qutb Shahi tombs and Cheriyal paintings as well. The original curved roof, slabs and pillars of the station will change completely once the station is rebuilt with a more contemporary outlook.
“Secunderabad, previously administered by the British was actually handed-over (in what is called rendition of Secunderabad) to the Nizam. The administration of the city changed hands from the British to the Nizam in 1937. The residential area was now under Nizam’s rule again. The foundation year, however, is observed as 1805, when it started coming under British rule. It was when the Nizam and the British had a subsidiary alliance, which led to the city being built under the name of Sikander Jah (Asaf Jah III),” said Sibghat Khan, founder, of Deccan Archive.
Nizam State Railway came into being when all the shares of Nizam Guaranteed State Railways, a British-owned company in London, were bought by Hyderabadi citizens.
“I have travelled in the last steam train in Cavalry barracks in the army area, which is still used by the army. It is called Cavalry Barracks because the army would bring their horses here. There was a separate line that diverted without coming into this major station and would go to Bollaram and other stations, which is now part of the Nizamabad line,” said Anuradha Reddy, talking about the railway line going from Kachiguda to Manmad via Aurangabad and Nizamabad, a meter-gauge line, called Hyderabad-Godavari Valley Railway.
She added that it is important for people to know the history of the place because it encapsulates the lived experiences of people accounting for generations and holds tangible memories, specifically for a town like Secunderabad that grew as a significant industrial and trade centre.
Right in front of the station, there is Allah Rakha sarai, a resting place for travellers, traditionally built near mosques, temples and outside the city. With the coming of a new mode of transport, the sarai was also built near some of the stations, such as Secunderabad, Nampally and Kachiguda.
Reminiscent of the British architecture, the sarai has room along the periphery with space right in front of them and a common courtyard, with a fountain in the centre. The fountain has been filled up with sand and garbage now but most of the structure is intact as it was built. A board displays the charges for each room and instructions for travellers.
“There were many Muslim communities that came as traders in Secunderabad. In this area, there is a Regimental Bazaar, where the British residents came and stayed. Much of the railway land today was once occupied by the British. Sarai like these provided a safe and sheltered space for travellers,” said Anuradha Reddy.
Shedding light on the demolishment of heritage structures, specifically old water sources, she said that like the fountain in the sarai, “The condition of all our wells and fountains in Telangana, is that either they are filled in with rubbish or demolished entirely, starting with Public Gardens. A beautiful fountain in the middle of the public lawns was also demolished,” she said.
Secunderabad also grew up as an important grain centre, the grain dharamshala at Monda market standing witness of it. One of the classic examples of the intermixing of cultures is St Thomas Church and the cemetary opposite it, with some of the oldest graves displaying inscription in Tamil and English. It was built for Madras army regiment officers who would move back and forth from Hyderabad to Madras.
British architecture is also visible by many clock towers in the region, one at the Monda market and another can be spotted at James street in the vicinity. As the city still holds its importance, changing the integral structure of the station will also lose its essence as a Hyderabadi building as the new development plans do not, reportedly, take into account these elements.