Having taken up the initiative to clean Hussainsagar lake, the more than 400-year-old water body in the heart of the city polluted badly in last few decades, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has been working at diverting the sewage inflows.
Apart from industrial effluents, the sewage inflows from different inlets has been a major problem for the lake which was constructed in the year 1562 to cater irrigation needs of the then city.
For sewage diversion, the HMDA has been working out a 1,600 mm ring sewer main running to a length of 2.5 kms from Necklace Road to opposite the Sailors Club. This part of the diversion initiative mainly looks at preventing Kukatpally nala inflows from entering the lake.
Another part has been the Balanagar sewage trunk main of 1,400 mm dia which is 4.85 km long from the confluence point of Jeedimetla and Kukatpally nala to ring sewer at Necklace Road. The direct trunk main at Rangadhamini of a length 1.15 km also form part of the project.
The sewage treatment plants (STPs) for the Hussain Sagar cleaning include one with 30 MLD capacity at Picket Nala opposite KIMS Hospital for tertiary treatment and 20 MLD on Balkapur nala adjacent to Khairatabad flyover which is upgraded for tertiary level with membrane treatment.
While the HMDA is looking at dredging of sediments at the inlets to check the effects of industrial effluents, protection of all the water bodies that fall in the catchment area of the lake has been envisaged.
A total of 80 lakes have been identified in the entire catchment area which is spread over a wide area including the locations of Balanagar, Bowenpally, Qutbullahpur, Jeedimetla, Alwal, Yousufguda and Kukatpally.
According to HMDA officials, for purpose of protection, these lakes were divided into those with a spread of over 10 hectares, below 10 hectares and those below 10 hectares but were found to be prone for encroachments.
