Musi rejuvenation: over 10,000 structures enumerated on riverbed, buffer zone

River Musi as seen at Attapur in Hyderabad.
| Photo Credit: File photo

Telangana government will have to demolish over 10,000 structures in the bed and buffer zones of the Musi river to proceed with the Musi River Development project as envisaged.

A survey conducted by the Revenue Department in and around the river reportedly revealed that there are 2,116 structures on the riverbed and 7,850 in the buffer zone.

Excluding structures such as Dhobi Ghats, tombs, chillas and others, the individual houses on the riverbed could number around 1,500-1,600, as shared by sources.

The number of people to be displaced by demolition of the structures is yet to be known, as there could be multiple families staying in the same building, especially in the densely populated ghettoes of Chaderghat and Patel Nagar.

Area falling within 50 metres on both sides of the river’s 55 kilometre course through the city has been determined as the buffer zone by the Irrigation Department.

Built on patta land

The structures within the buffer zone were built on patta land and proper land acquisition procedure will have to be applied to them, if they are to be razed.

The government proposes to rehabilitate the people dwelling on the riverbed as most of them are poorest of the poor and extremely underprivileged, according to officials, who sought anonymity.

On September 21 (Saturday ), Minister in charge of Hyderabad Ponnam Prabhakar visited two locations of the double-bedroom complexes built during the previous BRS regime, in search for homes for allotment to the Musi displaced.

Together with MLA Ahmed bin Abdullah Balala, Principal Secretary, Municipal Administration and Urban Development, M. Dana Kishore, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Commissioner Amrapali Kata and Hyderabad Collector Anudeep Durishetty, the Minister inspected vacant units in the 2BHK complex at Chanchalguda crossroads. The complex has 288 units, of which 146 are vacant.

Mr. Prabhakar later visited the double-bedroom complex in Vanasthalipuram, where 90 units are vacant. The Minister promised the families set to be displaced all measures for rehabilitation. Women from the families will be provided self-employment opportunities through Indira Mahila Shakti Scheme, he added.