HMDA seeks district collectors’ intervention to check 607 identified lakes:

The ICAD has submitted a list of 607 additional lakes identified in the HMDA area and the HMDA’s Lake Protection Cell (LPC) sent the list to the district collectors concerned to reconcile the details with lakes that the HMDA had notified earlier.

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has requested the intervention of district collectors in inspecting 607 lakes identified by the Irrigation and CAD Department (ICAD).

The ICAD has submitted a list of 607 additional lakes identified in the HMDA area and the HMDA’s Lake Protection Cell (LPC) sent the list to the district collectors concerned to reconcile the details with lakes that the HMDA had notified earlier.

“The process of the publication of preliminary and final notifications of these additional lakes will be done soon after the information of these lakes is received,” a senior HMDA Lakes wing official told ‘Telangana Today’.

Since it was established 14 years ago, the Lake Protection Cell has issued preliminary notifications for 2,525 lakes and final notifications for 230 lakes, said the official. Between August 2024 and June 2025, the HMDA issued preliminary notifications for 408 lakes and final notifications for another 995 lakes.

The HMDA initially identified 3,532 lakes in its jurisdiction, and subsequently, detailed field verification and office record verification were conducted by the concerned districts. This process aimed at excluding the duplicates, non-existent, and submerged lakes. Finally, the revised number of lakes, 3,262 (tentative) was identified.

Out of these 3,262 lakes, 476 lakes (tentative), are within the ‘Outer Ring Road’ (ORR) and 2,786 lakes are outside the ORR, said an official release of the status on the HMDA’s lakes. So far, 2,933 preliminary notifications and 1,225 final notifications have been issued.