Hyderabad: Pointing out the historical lapses in rejuvenating the Musi river, the Forum for Good Governance (FFGG) has written to Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy asking the state government to first clean the polluted river before constructing the planned 108-feet statue of Lord Shiva in it.
FFGG general secretary Padmanabh Reddy, in his letter, was referring to the foundation stone laid by the CM for a temple at Manchirevula on March 29, where the Shiva statue is planned to be built in the middle of the Musi river. “It is proposed to complete the work of ‘Omkareswara temple’ in two years,” he added
He stated that the existing common treatment plants designed to handle industrial pollutants that have polluted the river over decades have proven ineffective. The Musi river has, over the decades, suffered severe ecological damage, with pollution levels rendering the water toxic and unsuitable for sustaining aquatic life, agriculture or human life, he added.
While FFGG appreciated the Telangana government’s move to rejuvenate the river, Padmanabh Reddy asserted that the move to build planned structures as part of it, like a temple, masjid, gurudwara, church, etc, is “objectionable.”
“The problem of cleaning is a serious issue and may take a long time to clean. Under these circumstances, without cleaning the river, constructing places of worship is not justified,” he pointed out.
Historical failure in cleaning the Musi river
Over the years, successive state governments have failed to rejuvenate the Musi river. The river essentially stopped flowing in Hyderabad after the Osman Sagar and Himayat Sagar dams were built by the last Nizam, Osman Ali Khan (1911-48), to stop the water from coming into the city. This was done to flood-proof Hyderabad due to the devastating 1908 floods, where the Musi river overflowed into the city and killed thousands of people.
However, post 1948, after the accession of Hyderabad to India, successive state governments, especially under the erstwhile joint Andhra Pradesh state, the city municipality began using the dry river as a sewerage waste site. Industrial waste from across town was poured into the Musi, turning it into one of the most polluted lakes. This is also what FFGG extensively pointed out to the CM in its letter.
“In the year 2001, the Water Board prepared a scheme – “Abetment of Pollution of river Musi” and submitted to the Government of India, which sanctioned the scheme. On the whole, Rs 405 crore were spent, but the desired results could not be achieved. Meanwhile, the GHMC (Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation) took up the construction of a rubber dam near the High Court to control pollution at a cost of Rs 50 crore. This also did not give any results and, finally, dismantled,” explained Padmanabh Reddy.
He further pointed out that in 2011, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) prepared yet another scheme, the “Musi Phase II,” with an estimated cost of Rs 750 crore, and it was sent to the Government of India.
“The Government of India did not agree to the proposal and directed the state Government to prepare an integrated and workable plan involving various agencies like the Water Board, GHMC, HMDA, Horticulture, Pollution Control Board, etc. Subsequently, in the year 2012, a fresh proposal was prepared for an amount of Rs. 17,130 crore to be executed by the Water Board, GHMC and HMDA. The DPR (detailed project report) prepared was defective, hence the government did not approve it,” the FFGG said in its letter.
‘Musi identified as one of India’s most polluted rivers’
Further, the Telangana government, after the state’s formation in March 2017, constituted the Musi River Front Development Corporation (MRDCL) to act as a nodal agency for the preparation and execution of a comprehensive plan to rejuvenate the river. Padmanabh Reddy, however, pointed out that even after nine years, no work was taken up by the MRDCL to clean up Musi.
“Due to encroachments, the Musi river significantly narrows, resembling a big nallah or drain as it flows through the city. Due to the inadequate water management system, untreated sewage is regularly discharged into the river, transforming it into a heavily polluted waterway. According to the NGT (National Green Tribunal), the river has been classified as a priority one polluted stretch. In the year 2015, the Pollution Control Board identified Musi as one of India’s most polluted rivers,” stated the FFGG general secretary.
With this historical trajectory of the river in mind, Padmanabh Reddy opined that erecting a Shiva statue in the middle of the polluted river is “a sin.”
“Keeping all these factors in view, the Forum for Good Governance requests the Chief Minister to kindly take up cleaning of Musi as first priority and once it is cleaned, any number of places of worship can be taken up,” he added.
