Residents from various parts of the city raised concerns over sewage inflow into lakes, foul odour and mosquito menace during a phone-in programme conducted by the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) on Saturday.
The programme was held from 12 noon to 1 p.m., during which HYDRAA Commissioner A.V. Ranganath interacted directly with complainants. He directed officials concerned to address the grievances and asked residents to contact him again if issues were not resolved within a week.
Citizens were advised to call 040-29565750 or 040-29565759 every Saturday, except on holidays. Complaints were also received from districts about lake encroachments, to which the Commissioner clarified that HYDRAA’s jurisdiction was only up to the Outer Ring Road (ORR). He said six lakes had been taken up in the first phase and that 14 more would be developed shortly in a phased manner.
A majority of grievances were related to encroachments of lakes, parks, roads, government and public utility lands, and footpaths. From Gagillapur under Dundigal municipality, residents alleged illegal plotting on encroached roads. Calls were also received regarding attempts to construct a temple in a park near Pragathi Nagar, stalled diversion canal works to prevent sewage inflow into Nagireddy Kunta, obstruction caused by water tankers along a 100-foot road near Sunnam Cheruvu in Madhapur, and alleged diversion of storm water drains by major construction firms.
Attapur residents reported encroachment of 33 guntas of government land and 900 square yards earmarked as park space, urging authorities to prevent further construction. The Commissioner interacted with 36 complainants during the programme and assured action.
The HYDRAA through a statement on Wednesday, also informed about the sealing of two five-storeyed buildings under construction on land earmarked for public utilities in Venkateshwara Colony, Neknampur village.
Four plots measuring about 300 square yards each were originally earmarked for public utility use in the HMDA-approved layout. However, by allegedly creating fake Layout Regularisation Scheme (LRS) documents and clubbing adjoining land, nearly 1,500 square yards were shown as private land and building permission was obtained from the erstwhile Manikonda Municipality. A ground plus five storeyed structure was subsequently raised.
In another instance within the same layout, nearly 2,000 square yards reserved for a septic tank/park was reportedly secured with LRS and building permission directly from HMDA, following which another five-storey building was taken up at a rapid pace.
Published – February 07, 2026 08:20 pm IST
