Hyderabad: The Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) KT Rama Rao said that the state government is going to bring clean water into the river Musi for the first time.
The Minister said this as a response to the question on the government’s Musi River Front Development project (MRFDP). “There are 54 major nalas in the 675 sq. km GHMC area and 94% sewage water flows into Musi. We can treat the waste that flows into the river during the beautification project and it would be a long-term solution, but the downside is that the river is currently heavily polluted,” he explained.
He further said that they were working on treating sewage up to 100% sewage treatment and the project has been allotted 3,866 crores by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao. “The plan involves setting up decentralised STPs (Sewage Treatment Plants) in 36 parts of the city so that water can be cleaner in local lakes and water bodies, along with ultimately bettering the state of the Musi river itself,” he said.
The Minister said that no other city in India treats more sewage water than Hyderabad. “The current govt has been using all tech available to them to keep an eye on the Musi’s levels of encroachment, buffer levels, flood limits, etc. We will also build 3 check dams and have already sanctioned Rs 545 crores for the building of 14 bridges in the city along with roadways around the Musi river. Hyderabad Road Development Corporation Ltd (HRDCL), Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) and the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), Metro water supply and the Roads and Building department would work together on this project,” he informed.
He stated that the construction of the STPs, roadways, and bridges would all amount approximately to Rs 9000 crores. “To ease the overflow that the river faces during the rains, we have planned ways to bring fresh water from the Konda Pochampalli reservoir to the Musi river through the Gandipet lake. By doing this, the dam gates can be opened during rains to allow clean water into the river.”
KTR said that this project would cost the state exchequer Rs 16,634 crores. He added that the work on STPs is already underway, and they are determined to finish this project as soon as possible.
