April 15, 2025
Citizen Action Saved a Forest in Hyderabad
When communities mobilise, courts listen, and forests can be saved
What's happening?
The government proposed auctioning 400 acres of forested Kancha Gachibowli land in Hyderabad, triggering massive student and environmentalist protests.
The forest harbors over 450 flora and fauna species and functions as an urban lung. Deforestation would eliminate a carbon sink, worsen urban heat island effects, and harm groundwater recharge.
Why should you care?
The High Court and later Supreme Court intervened, ordering work stoppage and forest restoration and protection.
This is a story of citizens standing up and winning. It shows that when communities mobilise, courts listen, and forests can be saved.