396 out of 920 water bodies in Hyderabad encroached; Dy CM says decision on structures in buffer zones yet to be taken

Govt will hold talks with affected families and doors are open for opposition to give suggestions, said Mr. Bhatti

A total of 396 out of the 920 water bodies in Hyderabad were subject to encroachment till 2023. While 225 water bodies had been encroached over a period of time till 2014, an additional 171 were either fully or partially encroached from 2014 to 2023. 

At a press conference held at the Telangana Secretariat on Monday (October 7, 2024), Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka made a powerpoint presentation about the water bodies within the Outer Ring Road  (ORR) limits in 2014 and their status in 2023 and extent of encroachments. The presentation was based on the satellite imagery of water bodies captured from time to time. 

At the press conference, he along with officials from Telangana Remote Sensing Applications Centre presented satellite images of the water bodies which were partially or fully encroached: the images from 2014 and 2023 were juxtaposed with to show the extent of encroachment. 

According to the presentation, Hyderabad had 920 water bodies of which 225 had been encroached over a period of time till 2014. In 2014, 695 water bodies remained, of which 499 were live (without encroachment) and 196 were partially encroached.

The situation, however, changed by 2023 when 30 of the live water bodies were encroached fully and another 57 partially. Among the 196 partially encroached water bodies, 24 were fully encroached in nine years and another 70 saw spurt in encroachments. The situation was so alarming that 171 of the remaining 695 water bodies were either fully or partially encroached. 

Water bodies were disappearing at a fast pace going by the steep rise in the encroachments, the presentation said. “It is time we protect the existing water bodies or else, there will be no water bodies left for future generations,” Mr. Bhatti said. 

The Deputy Chief Minister said the Government was focussing on clearing the encroachments on the riverbed and full tank level in respect of water bodies. A decision on the structures that had come up on the buffer zones of these water bodies was yet to be taken. “We are firm that compensation will be paid to affected families based on the cost of land and structures,” he said. 

The Government is prepared to hold discussions with the affected families and ensure that they are effectively rehabilitated. “It is the responsibility of the Government to see that nobody is at loss because of the projects,” he said.

To a query, he said the Government would examine the proposal for taking action against the officials during whose time permissions for construction of structures in FTL and buffer zones of water bodies were given.

Published - October 07, 2024 05:47 pm IST