Lakes and Water Bodies of Hyderabad - Case of Nallagandala

Hyderabad is one of the rapidly developing cities of India, experiencing an exponential rise in population whose drinking and other purposes are fulfilled by surface water storage from major lakes. The city which had earlier around 800 lakes including natural and manmade have reduced to 185, due to encroachments, dumping construction debris, eutrophication, illegal mining activities, ungoverned tourist activities, and cultural misuse. Many lakes have been polluted due to untreated sewage, and municipal waste, including plastic and construction waste being discharged into these. The boom of real state and infrastructure development has been vanishing and causing major threats to the water bodies due to landfills, deterioration of water quality and quantity, negatively impacting human health, wildlife particularly birds’ population. Hyderabad's lakes are in a state of decline?due to several factors, including:?

• Encroachment

Lakes have been lost to real estate development and residential colonies.?For example, the area of Shamirpet Lake shrank from 486 hectares in 1989 to 256 hectares in 2006.?

• Pollution

Lakes have been polluted by untreated sewage, municipal waste, and construction debris.?

• Drying up

Many lakes have dried up, including Ibrahim Cheruvu, RK Puram Lake, Umda Sagar, and Gurram Cheruvu.?As of February 2023, approximately 23 out of 185 lakes in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits have dried up.?

• Neglect

While some major lakes are being managed, many small lakes are being neglected and have fallen prey to the land mafia.?Some efforts have been made to restore the city's lakes, including:?

• Kakatiya mission:?Launched in 2014, this mission aims to restore tanks and reservoirs in Telangana state. There has been some success in rural Telangana.?
• The?Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Monitoring and Protection Agency (HYDRA): The Telangana Government has officially given legal status to HYDRA and proposes to propose to protect our natural resources, particularly lakes, and water bodies, by taking action against illegal encroachments.

Case of Nallagandala:

Nallagandala Lake is a natural rain-fed lake in the Nallagandala area in the north-western fringe of Hyderabad. The lake bed is around 90 acres, which includes a permanent marsh on the southwestern edge of the lake. The lake bed shares its boundary with the Hyderabad Central University in the east and is surrounded by residential buildings on the remaining sides. The lake bed acreage is under threat from the construction activities around the lake. The untreated sewage water enters the university and finally joins the Peacock Lake from the following 2 drains of Residential colonies of Gopannapally Village. As per the comprehensive Sewerage Master Plan prepared by M/s. Shah Technical Consultant, the Peacock Lake and Nallagandla Lake and Sewer Network /Diversion Nala are covered under the Lingamkunta STP Sewerage Zone of Municipality area, Godavari catchment Basin. These plans have remained on paper for the last 4-5 years. The upper catchment of the Nallagandala lake falls within Hyderabad Central University. There were a series of upstream lakes that have been maintaining water levels in the Nallagandala lake. However, the mushrooming of multitower projects from three sides is threatening the future of the lake. One of the major projects of leading developers has almost blocked the major portion of the inlet. Extreme weather is becoming common due to climate change. On October 13-14th 2020, the city experienced two consecutive rainfall events. The first event brought 30 cm of rainfall in one day and the second event brought 18 cm in 24 hours. The flooding affected both the old and new parts of the city including the Nallagandala catchment. The flooding affected the labour colony which was located in the present multi-storeyed construction. Most of the settlements were washed away and 3 lives were lost in the flash flood in the same location where now multi-storeyed towers stand with basemensts.

For effective conservation and management of lakes in urban as well as rural areas, the following three areas of concern could be identified and addressed based on the Green Hyderabad Environment Project (GHEP) experience in Hyderabad.

1. The problem of siltation due to natural, cultural, and other factors can be tackled by the following measures:

·?????? Desilting lakes in summer seasons to increase their water holding capacity. The silt and sediment rich in organic matter can be used as manure for neighborhood gardening or agriculture. Licenses can be issued for free silt lifting from lake beds in summer.

2. The concern of nutrient enrichment and toxicity or organic enrichment (Eutrophication) can be solved by the following measures:

·?????? The nutrient quantity can be reduced by regulating the development of

·?????? biomass and its harvesting;

·?????? The harvested biomass should be composted;

·?????? The sewage must be treated before letting it into water bodies;

3. Socio-economic factors leading to alterations in hydrography and morphometry can be taken care of by the following measures.

The Lake boundaries should be demarcated clearly and neck-less/garland roads should be laid to prevent encroachment of the lakebed. The already constructed/encroached area which threatens the very survival of the lake should demolished;

·?????? The Lake boundaries should be demarcated clearly and neck-less/garland roads should be laid to prevent encroachment of the lakebed. The already constructed/encroached area which threatens the very survival of the lake should demolished;

·?????? Bio-conservation zones around lakes should be established.

·?????? Lake authorities at Central and state levels should be established to coordinate inter-departmental management and include lake-dependent stakeholders and people.

·?????? Laws should be implemented to prevent further degradation of lakes.