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.