Hyderabad is one of the fastest-growing cities in the world. Colonies and apartments glow night after night. The real estate sector in the suburbs is on boom like never before. However, in this concrete jungle, there are many pitfalls for the environment. At the same time, the ponds are disappearing.
Understanding that about 10 percent of the ponds under the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority have been eaten away makes it clear what the environment is like now. Even with the details in the revenue records, the Department of Irrigation is having a hard time identifying and demarcating them. Statistics show that nearly 300 of the 3,532 ponds in the seven districts covered by the HMDA are missing.
The highest number of 100 ponds in the Rangareddy district and 50 ponds in the Medchal- Malkajigiri district were consumed. The HMDA Metropolitan Commissioner says they have data available for all ponds. He said that physical verification was being carried out especially with regard to their scope.
17 ponds in Shamshabad, 14 in Balapur zone, 13 in Maheshwar, 12 in Abdullapur Met, and 19 in Shabad zone are non-existent. The main reason for the disappearance of all these is the construction of hundreds of colonies under the HMDA over the last two decades. As a result, the ponds seem to have been eaten.
The ponds are being surveyed by the Joint Revenue and Irrigation Departments. Officers should physically visit the site and inspect the pond area and full tank level. For a total of 3,532 pounds, a Physical survey of 3,114 ponds has been completed as per the official calculations. However, there are many differences in the extent and boundaries of the identified lakes in the records of the Revenue and Irrigation Departments. A survey of another 418 ponds is pending.
