Local residents near Kondapur's Masjid Banda area allege that they are having trouble falling asleep, as a massive construction project adjacent to their homes is indulging in heavy work late into the night.
"This has been happening for almost a year, but only began to get worse over the last five to six months," says Praneet Kandarpa, a local resident, living adjacent to the construction project being undertaken by Aparna Constructions and Estates Pvt. Ltd.
Praneet went live on Facebook at around 12:30 am on Friday morning, which showed that construction activity was going on in full swing at Aparna Serene Park, despite orders to stop work between 11 pm and 5 am.
"Despite repeated complaints, nothing has happened. I took the video from my roof and even called the police. The cops have warned the site manager a few times in the past, while I have complained over the phone," Praneet says.
"Last night, the policeman on patrol duty was also not very responsive and seemed hesitant if he could make them stop the construction. However, they still visited the spot and after shouting at them from my roof, they stopped. Again at around 3 am, they started working," Praneet alleged.
He also said that the locals approached DS Prasad, one of the directors of Aparna, who assured them that action would be taken, but to no avail.
"Despite the police responding on social media and ordering immediate action and cops coming and telling them to stop, they had the audacity to restart as soon as the policemen left," Praneet alleged.
Speaking to TNM, Sub-Inspector Dharmesh from the Gachibowli Police Station said, "The permission to construct in the night is generally granted by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and the Commissioner of Police. However, if the construction project is situated close to a residential colony, then permission is generally not given."
He also added that he would look into the allegations and check if the company had permission to carry out construction activity in the night.
When contacted, an official from Aparna said that they generally adhered to the timings stipulated by the government.
"We have stopped the late-night work after it was brought to our notice earlier. On Thursday, as there was heavy rain, two slabs were to be completed, which is why the work was extended," the official said.
Prior complaints
This is not the first time that this particular construction project is in the news.
In October last year, local residents filed a police complaint, alleging that Aparna Constructions obstructed the natural flow of water in the area, which resulted in major waterlogging in front of the University of Hyderabad (UoH), which is situated nearby.
The Professor CR Rao road, which connects areas of Gachibowli to Serlingampally, witnessed massive waterlogging that month, as drainage water stood knee-high outside the main gate of UoH.
The complainant alleged that constructors noticed that their cellar was getting flooded due to the rain and used sand bags to block and divert the water.
However, the company had denied all allegations.
In a statement, Rakesh Reddy, Director of Aparna Constructions & Estates Pvt Ltd. had said, “We would like to categorically clarify that there is no natural water canal or nala that passes through our projects and we clear all our building debris responsibly and ethically."