Musi Jan Andolan seeks audit of Musi spending since 1997

They have also asked for a complete Detailed Project Report (DPR) to be released in Telugu, Urdu, and English.

Hyderabad: The Musi Jan Andolan, a coalition of residents displaced due to the Musi project, activists and voluntary organisations, has demanded a public audit on “the thousands of crores” of public money spent on the rejuvenation of the river since 1997.

Their other demands include a halt to massive concrete constructions such as check dams and roads until an independent Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (SIA) is completed and the operation of effluent treatment plants (ETP) to prevent toxic industrial waste from entering the water.

They have also asked for a complete detailed project report (DPR) to be released in Telugu, Urdu and English, and for a statutory public hearing/consultation to be conducted with at least 60 days given to the public.

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It has also called for the constitution of a unified statutory authority comprising environmental experts and civil society representatives, with jurisdiction over the entire basin from Vikarabad to Vadapally.

The committee held a meeting with people displaced due to the project on Thursday, September 10, which saw the participation of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLA Sudheer Reddy, who previously served as the Musi project chairman, and environmentalists.

Reddy alleged that while the previous government sought to clean the Musi River, the current government is trying to turn it into a real estate development.

On the other hand, environmentalist Donthi Narsimha Reddy questioned the absence of river pollution cleanup in the project and remarked that every government, irrespective of the party, has been pursuing destructive policies regarding Musi development.