Hyderabad drains not fit to handle rains

Hyderabad: The monsoon is about to reach the state in the next few days, but the lack of preparations of the GHMC came to light with the showers on Friday.

The way in which the de-silting work is progressing presents a dismal picture. While the GHMC limits have nearly 1,500 km of stormwater drains, de-silting works have been taken up on around 750 km, and these works have not been completed yet.

GHMC officials said that around Rs 28 crore had been sanctioned for de-silting and that the department has prioritised it based on the most vulnerable areas.

“Around 328 works have been taken up. Most of the major choke points have been cleared. The rest of the works too are nearing completion,” a senior official said.

On Thursday, GHMC commissioner Somesh Kumar directed officials to complete the works and send a daily report to him.

Even after the works are completed, there will not be much difference as the stormwater drains are neither wide enough nor sufficient in length to serve the city’s requirement.

With the current width, the drains will overflow if the city receives more than 1.2 cm of rain in one hour.