Know all about Dr B R Ambedkar Telangana State Secretariat

After the formation of Telangana state, the first government headed by Chief Minister Sri K Chandrashekhar Rao decided to build a new edifice for the secretariat.

Expert Committee on demolition of Old Secretariat – Formation of New Secretariat

The State government constituted an Expert Committee headed by R&B Engineer-in-Chief with Engineer-in-Chief of Irrigation and Panchayat Raj Departments. This committee made a comprehensive study and identified many deficiencies and recommended to build a new secretariat with high standards as per the requirements of the state.

KCR laid the foundation stone to the new secretariat

Chief Minister KCR laid the foundation stone for the construction of new secretariat on June 27, 2019.

Famous architects Dr. Oscar G. Concessao and Dr. Ponni M. Concessao were appointed as designers for the construction of the new secretariat. The new secretariat is constructed based on the model approved by KCR.

Shapoorji Pallonji and Company Pvt Ltd has been awarded the contract to construct the new Secretariat and it has undertaken the construction with highest standards.

The ‘domes’ of the secretariat have been built on the basis of the styles of the Neelakantheswaraswamy temple of the Kakatiya period in Nizamabad, Gopurams and designs of the Rajapraasaadams of the Wanaparthi Samsthanam ( princely state) and the pattern of the Hanuman temple in Sarangapur, Gujarat. All the Tapadas (plating), which look attractive on the outside, are made of red sandstone, and the peak-like towers in the middle are made of sandstone brought from Dholpur, Rajasthan.

Lumbini Park is located on the east of the new secretariat, Mint compound on the left, to the north is India’s largest statue of Dr BR Ambedkar and to the south is the Teluguthalli Flyover.

Specifications

The construction work of the new secretariat building complex started in January 2021 in the wake Corona, court cases and other circumstances.

The building is constructed with a height of 265 feet on an area of 10,51,676 square feet in a sprawling 28 acres. No state has such a tall secretariat. It is one of the largest secretariats in the country. The solar panels installed on top of the building generates electricity required which used to light in the secretariat.

♦ The construction of the Secretariat is completed in a record time of 26 months after the commencement of work. Usually, it takes five years time to complete the works of such a huge construction.

♦Issuance of passes with smart card for entry into the Secretariat

♦ Surveillance with 300 CC cameras and 300 policemen

♦ Governance will be online by using the best technology.

♦ Galvanized Reinforced Concrete (GRC) technology has been used for the construction of domes and pillars.

♦ It took 6 months to erect the pillars.

♦ More than 3,000 workers took party daily.

♦ A total of 1,000 lorries of Red sandstone is used

♦ Administrative approvals of Rs. 617 crore have been received for building construction.

♦ Rs.550 crores have been spent so far. The construction cost has increased by 20-30 percent than the expected.

♦ The six-storey Secretariat has 635 rooms.

♦ A separate plant has been set up for AC.

♦ 24 lifts have been installed.

♦ Arrangements have been made to store 5.60 lakh liters for all types of needs.

♦ Solar panals are installed to save power .

♦ Specially arranged 30 conference halls.

♦ Big video conferences to hold meetings with field level officials from here.

♦ The building is constructed on two and half acres of the total area of 28 acres.

♦ Two banks, post office, ATM centers, railway counter, bus counter and canteen are available in front of the secretariat.

♦ A building with four floors has been constructed for the offices of Employees Association, Indoor Games, Housing Society behind the secretariat .

♦ Along with the secretariat, a temple, mosque and church are also built. Next to them, a reception hall, NRI center and publicity cell, rooms for media have been constructed.

♦ Since all the officials including ministers discharge their duties in new secretariat , the people who come with grievances will get immediate solution.

♦ The issue of giving passes with smart card is being considered for security.

♦ Two floors with 4,500 square feet each are built between the dome on the sixth floor.

♦These are meant for the President, Prime Minister and foreign guests who are on a state visit. Royal dining halls were established in the Persian model.

♦ Along with these, Royal Conference Halls also built.

♦ A total of 4 gates have been set up.

♦ CM, CS, DGP, Ministers and public representatives come from the main gate on the east side.

♦ The west side gate is used in case of emergency.

♦ Employees of all departments come from North East gate.

♦ Visitors come from the south-east gate.

♦ Parking facilities are provided everywhere.

♦ Impressive secretariat building with spacious lawns and huge fountains.

♦ The administration building is glittering with colourful lights.

♦ Spacious lawns and huge fountains are impressing the visitors .

♦ Looks attractive with tall pillars and huge domes.

♦ The main entrance with a wide portico doubles the beauty of the secretariat building.

♦ This new secretariat building is built as part of KCR's idea to provide administrative convenience and better governance to the people.

♦ After obtaining necessary permissions from Airport Authority, State Pollution Control Board, Fire Department, GHMC and other departments, Government started the construction work in January 2021.

♦ Completed 26 months by this April end.

♦ The construction of this building was done flawlessly with the instructions of R&B Department IGBC (Indian Green Building Council), TS Technological Services and State Police Department.

♦ The new secretariat is built higher than the historical buildings in the country.

♦ Works stalled for two times for 45 days each due to Corona. However, more workers pressed into service to complete the construction of the iconic buildings.

♦ Initially, 1,500 workers were on the job and y 4,000 workers worked for the construction at the end of the time.

♦ The new Secretariat has been constructed with state-of-the-art techniques for administrative convenience.

♦ Secretariat has been divided into A, B, C, D sections to avoid inconvenience to visitors. .

♦ Each section is assigned to certain departments.

♦ Lunch rooms have been constructed for employees on all floors.

♦ Cabinet meeting hall, conference and halls are arranged on sixth floor.

♦ The domes built on the Secretariat stand out as a special attraction.

♦ Greenery developed in front of the Secretariat and in the center of the building to make it pleasant.

♦ Four-way gates are installed along the roads around.

♦ Arrangements are made for fire engines to visit around the building in case of fire accidents.

♦ The Ashoka icon placed on the main domes is 265 feet above the ground.

♦ The building is constructed in 7,79,982 square feet area on a sprawling 28 acres acres of land on a height of 265 feet.

♦ Adequate arrangements have been made for parking in 6 acres.

♦ Built the new secretariat to accommodate 2,000 employees.

♦ Stores, record rooms, various services on the lower ground floor.

♦ Lunch room on each floor for employees.

♦ Records, security, housekeeping, building management etc. offices have been arranged on the ground floor.

♦ Fire Station, Creche, Dispensary, Employees Association Hall, Security Staff

♦ Parking facility on the south-east side for 160 cars and 300 bikes for visitors.

♦ The Secretariat main building has six floors. It will be an 11-storey structure with five more floors at the main entrance.

♦ 10 acres of lawn in the front area and 2 acres of lawn in the court yard.

The new Secretariat has an area larger than the constructed area of the Parliament building in Central Vista in New Delhi .

♦Two lifts have been arranged to reach the CMO on the sixth floor. 24 chambers have been created for ministers and their level.

♦ The minister, secretary and all the officers of that department offices will be located in one place. This is the only secretariat in the country with such a system.

♦ Used for high tea and royal dinners when foreign delegations and other important people arrive.

♦ 3,500 cubic meters of Dholpur red stone which was used for Parliament building wasalso utilised for the new Secretariat. For this, a whole mine was used in Dholpur, Rajasthan. From there, the stone was transported to Hyderabad in 1,000 trucks. Red stone is used for the entire basement, while light brown stone is used from the main dome to the portico.

♦ The height of the main portico is 42 feet. With such a height, the huge pillars became a special attraction. Each floor in this building is built with a height of 14 feet.

Area details

♦ Total Land Area : 28 Acres

♦ Built up area of the building : 2.45 acres

♦ Landscaping : 7.72 acres

♦ Central Court Yard Lawn : 2.2 acres

♦ Parking: 560 cars, 700 bikes,

♦ Ancillary Building Area : 67,982 sq.ft.

♦ Built-up area of main building complex : 8,58,530 sq.ft.

♦ Lower Ground + Ground + Height of each of the six floors : 14 feet

♦ Total height of Ashoka icon : 265 feet

♦ Building Length, Width : 600 X 300

♦ Main Domes (Sky lounge) : 11th floor

Other Construction Specialties:

Mahadwara ( Main Giant Gate)

The “Bahubali Mahadwara is constructed with four doors 29 feet wide and 24 feet high. This Mahadwara is made from Teakwood from the forests of Adilabad in Nagpur. Engraved with brass cast on wood. All the doors in the entire secretariat premises are made of Teakwood.

Formation of Domes

34 domes of four types have been constructed on the top of the secretariat building. These domes are classified as A, B, C and D. The 'A' type dome is 23.6 feet, 'B' type domes - 31 feet, 'C' type is 21.6 feet, and the largest of the 'D' type domes is 54.8 feet. It is estimated that up to 90 tonnes of iron is used in the construction of these domes.

Bahubali Domes

Two huge domes have been constructed in the state secretariat, on the lines of Taj Mahal and Gulbarga Gumbaz which have huge domes. 34 domes and figures of Lions, the national symbol are the crown of the new secretariat. The main dome is built at a height of 165 feet. The main domes are built before and behind the secretariat. This is the first time such huge domes have been created in modern structures mainly in government buildings. Each dome is 82 feet high (about eight stories) and 52 feet in diameter. These are the main attraction of the Secretariat building and are located on the east and west sides of the building . The interior of the domes is designed in the style of a sky lounge. It offers a view of the surrounding city from its wide windows. The area of these domes is designed as a VIP zone where the CM holds important meetings.

National symbol

On the main two domes, the national symbol - 18 feet high, 4 lion symbols have been installed. The five feet high and 2.5 tonne national symbols are made in Delhi.

Mini reservoir

A mini-reservoir with a capacity of two and a half lakh liters has been constructed underground in the secretariat building with the intention of saving water.

A special pipe line system has been installed to move the rainwater from all sides of the building into the reservoir. Water from this reservoir is used for the maintenance of 9 acres of lawns established in the premises of the Secretariat.

Fountains

Two Red sandstone fountains of the same height and area (28 feet height, 58 feet area), like in Parliament, have also been installed in front of the Secretariat.

Prayer halls

Government built Hindu, Muslim and Christian prayer halls in the Secretariat. They have been made more spacious and beautiful than before. The government has provided flexibility to get the construction done according to the wishes of the respective religious leaders. About nine thousand square feet have been allocated for temple, mosque and church.

Security arrangements

The government has established a state-of-the-art system for the security of the Secretariat. All the details of the visitors will appear on the computer screen of the security guards. Anyone can enter the Secretariat only after crossing the security line.

Visitors should link their Aadhaar data through face recognition. The complete details of the visitor are instantly displayed on the computer screen through the data stored in the police command control centre.

Electric vehicles are being arranged for disabled and elderly people.

Materials used for construction of Secretariat

♦ Steel: 7,000 tonnes

♦ Cement: 35,000 tonnes

♦ Sand: 26,000 tonnes

♦ Concrete: 60,000 cubic meters

♦ Bricks: 11 lakhs

♦ Granite: 3 lakh square feet

♦ Marble: One lakh square feet

♦ Dholpur Red Stone: 3,500 cubic meters

♦ Timber: 7,500 cubic feet

♦ Workers employed: 12,000 in three shifts

Floor wise departmental details in Secretariat –

♦ Ground Floor: SC Minority, Labor, Revenue Departments

♦ 1st Floor: Education, Panchayat Raj, Home Department

♦ 2nd Floor: Department of Finance, Health, Energy, Animal Husbandry

♦ 3rd Floor: Industrial and Commerce Department, Planning Department

♦ 4th Floor : Forest, Cultural Department, Irrigation Department, Law Department

♦ 5th Floor: R&B, General Administration Departments

♦ 6th Floor: Offices of CM and Chief Secretary

Details of Chief Minister's Office

The chief minister's office has been established on the sixth floor with an area of one lakh square feet. The chief minister's office is constructed white marble, and special sections have been set up for his staff. In order to meet the people and hold a Praja Darbar, a hall has been arranged in the name of 'Janahita' which can seat at least 250 people. The cabinet hall has been prepared so that 25 ministers and more than 30 officials can sit. A hall for 60 people and another hall for 50 people has been constructed for conducting meetings with the collectors. A state-of-the-art dining hall has been set up to seat around 25 people to dine with distinguished guests.

Dr. B.R Ambedkar Secretariat is the only Secretariat to have received a Golden Certificate from the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC).

As per the decision of Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, the officials completed arrangements for the inauguration of the new secretariat on April 30. Yagasala is set up in the Secretariat premises to perform ‘Sudarshana Yagam’ on the inaugural day. The Sudharshana yagam will begin soon after the sunrise at 6 am. The Purnahuthi of the yagam will be completed between 1.20 pm and 1.30 pm. Later, KCR will inaugurate the new integrated secretariat by cutting the ribbon and occupy his chambers in the sixth floor. After that, the ministers, secretaries, CMO and secretariat staff will sit the seats in their respective chambers between 1.58 pm and 2.04 pm. A gathering programme is organized in the secretariat premises at 2.15 pm and KCR will address.

Later, all the Government machinery mainly Assistant Section Officers, Section officers and other staff will occupy their seats in the chambers and discharge their duties from their chambers.

Along with the CMO and Secretariat staff, Ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLAs, Chairman of State level Corporations, HODs of all Departments, Collectors of all Districts, SPs, Zilla Parishad, DCCB, DCMS, Chairman of Zilla Libraries, Zilla Rythu Bandhu Samiti Presidents and Mayors will present in this programme. 2500 people have been invited.