18/05/2026
The War Between Fossil Fuels and Photosynthesis Plays Out in the KBR Park
Contributor: Sagar Dhara
The battle to save the KBR Park from being further devoured by Hyderabad’s ever-expanding urban sprawl is part of the bigger war being waged by fossil fuels against photosynthesis in rural (forests) and urban (parks and green spaces) areas. Photosynthesis is the very basis of all life on Earth. Fossil fuels are the foundation for social development in the industrial era. The fight to save the KBR Park is not just about saving the flora and fauna in the park; it is about the right for photosynthesis to thrive and the survival of life and all its astounding diversity.
The need for green spaces in cities
Green spaces, including parks, urban forests, gardens, and green rooftops, are crucial for cities for several reasons.
Micro-climate regulation to reduce the heat island effect: Green spaces reduce the urban heat island effect by lowering temperatures through evapotranspiration and by providing shade. A study done in Hyderabad of a total of 122,117 deaths for 1,220 summer days (2006 to 2015) showed that there was an increase of all-cause mortality of 16% per day when maximum temperatures were>40oC.
Improving Air Quality: Trees and plants absorb pollutants (CO₂, NO₂) and release oxygen, reducing urban smog.
Noise Reduction: Vegetation in green spaces acts as a natural sound barrier, minimising traffic and industrial noise pollution.
Flood Prevention: Green spaces absorb rainwater, reducing runoff and the risk of urban flooding.
Biodiversity Conservation: Urban green spaces provide habitats for birds, insects, and small wildlife.
Carbon sequestration: Urban green spaces sequester a small amount of carbon dioxide (CO2), a greenhouse gas.
Physical and mental health: Green spaces encourage walking, jogging, cycling, and other forms of physical activity. Access to green spaces helps reduce stress, anxiety, and depression.
Social well-being: Green spaces foster social interaction, inclusivity, and community cohesion.
Leisure activities: Parks provide safe and open spaces for play, sports, picnics, and gatherings.
Environmental education: Urban green spaces can serve as outdoor classrooms for learning about nature.
City aesthetics: Green spaces enhance urban aesthetics, making cities more visually appealing.
Cultural events: Parks often host festivals, performances, and community celebrations.
Tourism and microbusiness: Green spaces draw visitors and boost microbusiness.
Hyderabad does not meet green space norms.
The 3-30-300 rule recommends that a) every citizen should be able to see at least three trees (of a decent size) from their home, b) every neighbourhood have 30% canopy cover for cooling, better micro-climates and physical and mental health, c) the maximum distance of a green space of at least 1 ha for any urban resident should not be more than 300 m.
The United Nations Habitat and the European Environment Agency also recommend a 30% green space for urban areas. Hyderabad’s green space is 10-11% of its total area. The green space in Delhi is ~20% (contributed significantly by the Ridge forest and parks), Bengaluru—15%. Many cities outside India have significantly more green spaces than Indian cities, e.g., Singapore (~47% green cover), Vienna, (~50% green areas), and Oslo, (~68% forested and green space).
To solve its traffic and vehicular pollution problems, Hyderabad needs to think out of the box
The proposed KBR flyovers are primarily meant for cars. They will not ease traffic in the long run as the Jevons paradox will come into play, just the same way that it did on the Begumpet Road, which was expanded about 25 years ago to ease congestion, but more vehicles began plying on that road, and road congestion persisted at the same levels as earlier.
Car travel’s share of the p.km done in India in 2012 was just 8%, but consumed 40% of the energy spent in transporting people by fossil-fuelled prime movers. The corresponding figures for bus travel was 66.4% and 28%, respectively. From the table below, it is clear that the most environmentally friendly mode of transport is cycling, followed by buses, and the least environmentally friendly way of travelling is a single person in a car.
Hyderabad’s solution to solve its traffic and vehicular pollution problems cannot be done by building more flyovers, but by: a) reducing the number of trips people make, b) reducing trip distances made in a day, and c) switching to transport modes that consume less energy per passenger.kilometer (p.km). Here are a few practical suggestions that can help in making Hyderabad a greener city.
More cycle lanes: The entire city should have more cycle lanes to encourage cycling as an important mode of transport.
Cycle parking space at metro and MMTS stations: Create secure cycle parking spaces at metro and MMTS stations so that the last-mile connectivity between these stations and commuters’ homes is made easy.
Improve public transport: Increase public transport in Hyderabad, particularly buses.
More one-way streets: Create more short-stretch one-way streets. This will ease congestion on the streets and reduce vehicular pollution.
Vehicle share schemes: Encourage enterprises to set up vehicle (bicycles, 2-wheelers, cars) share schemes. A subscriber to such a scheme can pick up a vehicle in the scheme from any point he finds it and drop it off at a point where he wishes to go, as long as it is within the vehicle’s transit jurisdiction. Access to a vehicle may be gained by using a common key or by sending a password to a server through phone lines. Vehicles could be tracked using GPS trackers. There are around 535 bicycle-sharing programmes around the world with an estimated fleet of 517,000 bicycles. A variation of this scheme is to develop an app that facilitates vehicle owners to do vehicle-pooling.
Encourage neighbourhood schools: Trip distances can be reduced by mandating that children go to neighbourhood schools. This is already in vogue in several developed countries. With nearly 1 million school students travelling an average of 10 km less/day by encouraging neighbourhood schools, millions of litres of diesel would be saved per annum.
Neighbourhood schools will improve educational standards in government schools and reduce the divide between the rich and the poor. These measures may be implemented over 10 years to permit continuity of schools for those children who have already been admitted to certain private schools. In Delhi and Kerala, government schools have become popular as their education standards have been raised.
