KCR, KTR Responsible for Nala Deaths, Unsafe Streets: BJP

Hyderabad: The BJP on Wednesday said Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister K.T. Rama Rao are responsible for the deaths of people in Hyderabad’s nalas and on the city’s roads.

Party’s former MLA from Uppal and the state BJP vice-president N.V.S.S. Prabhakar, addressing a press conference, said the latest incident involving the death of a four year old boy who fell into a nala on Tuesday, is “sad but tragic proof of the utter failure of KCR and KTR, who claim their government spent Rs 67,000 crore on improving civic infrastructure in Hyderabad. The BRS government, and these two leaders lack even the basic vision of what to do to make the city streets safe for people”.

“They have failed in the last nine years to address the problems of rain water drainage, and despite several people dying on account of the neglect, the CM and KTR are unmoved. Overflowing nalas, collapsing buildings, fire accidents, breaching of tanks, and stray dogs rampaging in the city are not visible to these leaders. KCR and KTR must accept the responsibility for this sad plight of Hyderabad,” he said.

Areas in Qutbullapur, Miyapur, Begumpet and several others repeatedly face floods but no action has been taken so far, he said. It is the BRS leaders who are involved in illegal constructions on tank beds and low lying flood prone areas, he said.

It is not just these problems, Hyderabad is also extremely unsafe for pedestrians. The city has earned the reputation of being the deadliest city for walkers, with a 276% increase in pedestrian deaths or injuries. It has the seventh position in 53 cities in India, posing a threat to pedestrians. According to NCRB data, in 2021, there were 97 pedestrian deaths in Hyderabad, and 597 people sustained injuries, he said.