Hyderabad: Woes overflow at Bandlaguda

Hyderabad: Bandlaguda Jagir, the municipality on the outskirts of Hyderabad going to the polls on January 22, comprises five villages – Kismat-pur, Gandhamguda, Hy-dershakote, Peeramche-ruvu and Himayatsagar. The area, which has 60,000 voters in a population of one lakh, continues to witness a boom in real estate. So much so that green lands in the area have turned into a concrete jungle. Most people living here are migrants, with many of them working in the government sector. Gated communities too have come up in the area.

The 22 wards of this municipality are facing varied problems, the main ones being water supply and mosquitoes. Many areas do not have water pipelines and wherever they are networks of pipes, water is available only once a week.

As Bandlaguda Jagir is closest to the city, it has attracted many real estate dealers. There are considerable encroachments in the area. Many promoters who took up housing have not delivered yet. Considerable areas of the municipality are on the banks of Musi River. As a proper sewage system is lacking, most of the sewage is released into the Musi. This is the main reason for the foul smell in the area and breeding of mosquitoes.

Mr Amos Lentin of Shanti Nagar Colony in Hydershakote, Ward No. 15, says, “This area is full of mosquitoes throughout the year. Water availability is scarce, roads are bad and congested, and population is high. There are no government junior or degree colleges. Health facilities are lacking and there is no organised garbage collection. This is the most neglected area of the city.”

“Ms Prameela Naveen Kumar Godi, who is contesting from Ward No. 14 with about 3,000 voters, says, “We have three major group housing units; PBEL City comes under this ward. It is facing the major problem of stink and mosquitoes because sewage of the village goes through the premises of the township.”

Ms Shameem Sultana, who is a resident of Sun City says, “It has been 15 years since I have been living here. The other side of the highway has a water pipeline. But there is no pipeline on this side. Our bore wells work for around six months of the year. We struggle for water the rest of the time. There are 350 families living here and all of us are fed up with giving representations to authorities.”

Mr Md. Ainuddin, a retired MRO residing in Radhanagar Phase II, says, “We met the MLA, who is from the ruling party, many times. However, he has been of no help. Our primary needs are water and roads. There are many ditches on the road and many people are falling off their bikes. We have to buy water from private tankers”.

Mr N. Shanker from Kismatpur, in Ward No. 18, says, “There is no drainage, no proper roads and a huge water crisis. Only the real estate value has boomed, but amenities are zero”.

Contestants, who are not from the ruling party, are reminding their voters of the promises not kept by the state government, including houses for the poor and cleaning up the Musi River. Door-to-door campaigns have increased as the polls near.