HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court on Friday directed the Ranga Reddy district collector to conduct a survey on Raviryala Pedda Cheruvu in Maheshwaram mandal and its full tank level (FTL) area, and to file a report detailing the lake measurement and any encroachments or sand fillings in the FTL area.
A division bench of the court, comprising Chief Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice C.V. Bhaskar Reddy, also ordered the HMDA commissioner and the chief engineer of the minor irrigation department to take part in the survey alongside the RR district collector and to submit a detailed report within four weeks.
The bench was dealing with a PIL filed in 2016 by E. Anjaiah Goud and others, who sought directions from the court to fix the FTL limits of the Raviryala Pedda Cheruvu and remove all encroachments by conducting a survey. The petitioners claimed that several realtors were filling sand and mud into the cheruvu and its FTL area.
Despite several representations, the petitioners claimed, the authorities remained mute spectators to the encroachments around the lake.
Earlier, the court had ordered the government officials to file a counter-affidavit, but they have yet to do so. Even in the year 2022, the court has given the authorities two chances to file full details. However, authorities ignored the court orders. While ordering a lake survey, the court adjourned the case until January 27.
