Hyderabad: The first phase of the Musi Rejuvenation Project involves the acquisition of a few private properties. For the owners, the announcement feels like a slow countdown.
Madhu Park Ridge, a 14-year-old apartment complex in the ‘red area’ of the first phase, has found itself at the centre of this unease. With over 450 flats, the society has a swimming pool, gym and other facilities. It is also home to prominent personalities: retired journalists, artists, and even the former chairman of the Telangana State Public Service Commission. But this offers no immunity to uncertainty.
“When the government is undertaking something like this, we have no option but to cooperate,” says Ramana Reddy, a resident who is also part of the Hyderabad Art Society. “It’s all about the compensation now, but we haven’t received any official notice yet.”
At a recent residents’ meeting, tensions simmered as differing opinions surfaced. While some resignedly discussed legalities and loans, others clung to the hope that their lives wouldn’t be uprooted. “We’re in limbo,” Reddy admits. “We built everything legally. We have the documents, and the loans. Let’s see what happens.”
Although not in the first phase, smaller houses on the other side of Bapu Ghat now carry red marks. They too anticipate their impending displacement. Many residents have opted for the government’s 2BHK housing scheme. But others, like those in the buffer zone with bigger houses, remain caught in a limbo.
Rahul Yadav, a long-time resident, gazes at his half-constructed second floor. “They’re saying our house might be demolished. What’s left to build for?” Next door, Venkatesh, a potter, speaks of the sacrifices that it took to build his house: “all our savings — my wife’s jewellery, everything. If this goes, we won’t survive.”
Beyond the threat of displacement, the residents contend with a daily assault of pollution and neglect. A pipeline near the confluence of the Isa and Musi rivers emits an unbearable chemical stench. It makes it impossible to stand nearby without nausea setting in.
“This has been going on for years,” a resident said, referring to the incident of a truck dumping chemical waste into the Musi via a concealed pipeline on Tuesday.
“If they’re serious about rejuvenating the river, why is this happening and who authorised dumping chemicals here,” asks another resident. Ironically, rejuvenation might be the only way out for Musi to breathe again. As some of them point out, this represents a desperate hope for change to clean the river.
