Musi crying for attention on environment day

HYDERABAD: Musi River, once the city’s lifeline as the drinking water source, has been reeling under multi-dimensional issues with most of  them stemming from unkept promises made by successive governments. The nodal agencies that have been entrusted with the task of the river’s beautification and rejuvenation have been indulging in an eye-wash while ignoring the crux of the problem.

Even as the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) have been ignoring strengthening of the bund and arresting the dumping of residual waste into the river, the revenue department has been wasting time in the name of surveys for removing encroachments on Musi.

Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL), which has dumped huge piles of debris during the construction, has not bothered to remove it. Adding to the woes, the state government has only allocated Rs 200 crore from its annual budget for restoration of the river and beautification of the riverfront.

The earlier Congress government had spent Rs 34 crore to construct a rubber dam and beautification works. The dam was built in 2009 using Austrian technology and was expected to hold enough water to fill the area behind it and recreate the signt of a river in full flow. Over the years, floods have completely damaged the infrastructure and the rubber dam.

After the formation of Telangana state, the government dusted off the project report and decided to give a face-lift to Musi at an estimated cost of Rs 740 crore, with 70 per cent of the funding coming from the National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD). Due to a fund crunch, the project lay ignored in the first term of the TRS government. In the meanwhile, the project cost escalated to Rs 1,665 crore.

After forming the Musi Riverfront Development Corporation Limited (MRDCL), the authorities have done less to improve the water quality of the river and more for themselves. The government, which has allocated Rs 377.35 crore for 2017-18 managed to spend Rs 0.32 crore and another Rs 2.80 crore in 2018-19 while allocating the same amount from the State budget. It has continued with similar amounts during the financial years 2019-2020 and 2021.

In July 2020, amid the Covid-19 lockdown, MRDCL authorities identified a few patches on the banks of the river where there was scope for development: 3.5 km from Nagole to Kothapet, 3 km in Uppal Bhagat, 2 km from Chaderghat to Puranapul and about 2 km near Muslim Jung Bridge. The authorities decided to construct walking and cycling tracks of about six-metre width at a few locations and of three metres at other places. Officials said that they have spent Rs 9 crore for the development.

However, these plans remained on paper. Neither has the Water Board constructed sewerage treatment plants (STPs) to arrest the sewage flowing into the river and preventing the stench emanating from the river, nor has the GHMC  strengthened any bund of the bunds which were washed away during the flash floods of October last year.

Instead, the water board has been leaving over 1000 MLD (million litres a day) directly into the river. Apart from minor beautification works near Shilparamam at Nagole, the revenue department neither removed encroachments nor initiated action against HMRL for dumping debris into the river during the construction of MGBS bus station.

Asked about these issues, MRDCL chairman D. Sudheer Reddy said, "I took charge in February last year, and the lockdown followed in March. Amid multiple challenges we hardly had five months for development and the Musi project has made decent progress.  However, I can assure that in three years the Musi project will see radical changes.”