There is hope for 50 lakes and water bodies located in the Hyderabad
Metropolitan Region (HMR) as the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development
Authority (HMDA) has issued a notification of Full Tank Level (FTL)
boundaries and buffer zones of 50 water bodies which have been
encroached upon in HMR.

The HMDA Lake Protection Committee took up
the identification and listing of water bodies in the HMDA area,
involving field staff of Revenue and Irrigation Departments and local
bodies.

After due verification and certification by the Irrigation
department, lake maps with FTL boundaries and buffer zones with revenue
survey numbers have been notified as preliminary notification for
public information, suggestions and comments.

HMDA has invited
objections and suggestions on the FTL boundary maps for about 50 lakes
from the citizens. Based on the received communication, a final
notification will be issued.

Among the 50 lakes that have been
notified, they include Chintal Cheruvu and Pothuraj Kunta located in the
Ghatkesar Mandal, Brahmanpally Cheruvu in the Hayatnagar Mandal, Pedda
Cheruvu and Noor Mohammed Kunta in the Shameerpet Mandal and Erra
Cheruvu and Nelli Kunta which fall in Medchal Mandal.

Once a final
notification is issued, restrictions relating to building activity in
the vicinity of water bodies (as per Building Rules issued vide GO 168
MAUD Dept, dated April 7, 2012) will come into force where no building,
development activity will be allowed in the bed of water bodies.

The
water bodies and courses would be maintained as recreational/green
buffer zone and no building activity would be carried out within 100 mts
from the boundary of the river outside the municipal corporation,
municipality, nagar panchayat limits.

The officials said that
water bodies are of critical importance to HMR for many reasons as they
help in recharging ground water to meet various uses and serve as lung
spaces for the large urban population, besides maintaining ecological
balance to maintain the lake ecosystem of the region and for developing
foreshore areas as recreational zones.

As many as 2,857 lakes
existing under the HMDA. Out of this, 455 lakes fall within the Outer
Ring Road (ORR) and 2,402 are fall outside the ORR area. Of the lakes
falling within the HMDA jurisdiction, 168 lakes are in the GHMC limits
and 2,689 lakes fall in gram panchayats and municipalities outside the
GHMC in the HMDA limits.

Objections and suggestions may be
submitted up to February 15, 2014 and must be addressed to the HMDA
Metropolitan Commissioner (who is also the Chairman of the Lake
Protection Committee), Block-A, HMDA Complex, Tarnaka or to the Member
Environment, HMDA and Convener, LPC, Buddha Purnima Building, Tank Bund
Road, Hussainsagar, Hyderabad-500063. An email can also be sent to
me@hmda.gov.in or director_lpc@hmda.gov.in.