Restrictions by Army in Secunderabad Cantonment area irk morning walkers

SECUNDERABAD: The restrictions by the Army on morning walkers at Secunderabad Cantonment are still continuing, even after the ministry of defence (MoD) had relaxed the curbs on all civilian roads 10 months ago.
However, army soldiers deputed at Military Stations, are ignoring the orders and imposing restrictions on morning walkers.
Recently, Southern Command, Pune (SCB comes under this Command) also issued orders regarding ban on night restrictions, which were imposed for the past two weeks, in the wake of Pulwama terror attack and air strikes on Indo-Pak border.
Walkers were denied entry near Valerian Grammar School at Yapral, adjoining Secunderabad Cantonment early on Sunday. Hundreds of morning walkers, in Yapral, Ammuguda and abutting residential areas, are facing problem because of these restrictions, and also because soldiers are insisting ID proofs before letting them in.
Nikhil Sriram, a resident of Yapral, told TOI, “Morning walk is a routine exercise and hundreds of locals do it. But they upset over the restrictions being imposed by the Army. We are civilians and we cannot harm anyone. However, soldiers suspect that we are intruders, and demand ID proofs such as Aadhaar cards and driving licences.”
Nikhil said, “As usual, I was on a brisk walk, but was stopped by Army soldiers and they restricted entry into the premises. Keeping in view the security alert, I had carried my Aadhaar card and showed it to them, but they did not allow me in,” he said.
“A heated argument ensued with the Army soldiers over imposing of sudden restrictions on morning walks. Every day, nearly 300 locals are do morning walk. We tried to convince the soldiers to allow morning walk, after a thorough check and verification of ID proof, but they did not listen to our pleas, and asked us not to come this side,” said Nikhil.
Morning walkers are set to launch Open Secunderabad Cantonment All Roads (OSCAR) drive and urge for a solution on Army restrictions, said another resident of Yapral, Santosh.