Lakes have become urban myths in the city. Some of them exist in a shrunken form while a majority of them are just names. While the recent bouts of urban flooding have been blamed on encroachment of lakes, the fact is that some of the lakes have just disappeared.
The 1914 Leonard Munn map of Hyderabad shows exactly how many lakes in the city have disappeared. It shows Somajiguda Tank where a hospital, a supermarket, a car showroom and dozens of residential complexes exist now. In another area, it shows a massive lake called Kunta Mallaiyapalli. Today, a small water body exists on the site called Humayun Nagar Kunta. The map shows Kunta Chinna Narayana Gutta with a small hillock and a lake. The hillock with the temple exists in the area now called Chandrayangutta.
- Shows the number of lakes that have disappeared
- In place of Somajiguda Tank, a hospital, a supermarket, a car showroom and dozens of residential complexes exist now
- In another area, a massive lake called Kunta Mallaiyapalli is now a small water body called Humayun Nagar Kunta
- The map shows Kunta Chinna Narayana Gutta with a small hillock and a lake. The hillock with the temple exists in the area now called Chandrayangutta
- Mir Jumla Tank is one of the bigger lakes that has disappeared without a trace
- Where once was Tigal Kunta is now Tigal Kunta Crossroads
- Where once was Pahar Tigal Kunta is now Adams High School
- Kunta Bhawani Das does not exist any more
- Nawab Saheb Kunta has disappeared and in its wake is a wide covered nala that sometimes overflows flooding the neighbourhood with sewerage
One of the bigger lakes that has disappeared without a trace is the Mir Jumla Tank. Ironically, the area is now called Talab Katta. Where once was Tigal Kunta, it is now Tigal Kunta Crossroads. Where once was Pahar Tigal Kunta is now Adams High School. Kunta Bhawani Das doesn’t exist any more. Nawab Saheb Kunta has disappeared and in its wake is a wide covered nala that sometimes overflows flooding the neighbourhood with sewerage.
The outer contours of Hussainsagar Lake show how much the lake has shrunk. If Mint Compound was on one side of the lake, the railway track ran on the other. Now, a multiplex, gardens, parks and houses exist on what used to be the lake.
Frequent floods
“The groundwater is not getting recharged. There are no gardens, no open spaces and everything is plastered and that’s why we are having these frequent floods. Hyderabad has undulating terrain with Banjara Hills and some other hill areas at a higher level and Uppal and other areas at lower level and it also has natural slopes. These natural slopes have been disturbed by urbanisation, corrupt officials and contractors,” says Shakeel Ahmed, Chief Scientist at National Geophysical Research Institute, who specialises in groundwater hydrology.
During the recent bout of flooding, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) deployed massive pumps to drain water from residential areas of Ramanthapur surrounding the Pedda Cheruvu, but to little avail. “We could see the water was being pumped out, but the water level remained the same. Only after it stopped raining did the water level begin to recede,” said a resident.
Lake restoration
Despite the frequent flooding, the encroachments are going on apace. A few days ago, Lubna Sarwath of Save Our Urban Lakes wrote to Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) to stop encroachments on Bam Ruknud Dowla lake. “It is imperative that we restore every lake and reclaim the lost water spaces to save the city from inundations and to provide it with water. There should be no compromise on restoring the heritage lake to its maximum water spread, as a drinking water source, and as a home to biodiversity, both local and migratory,” wrote Ms. Sarwath. Even Twitter messages addressed to Ministers and officials about the encroachments have gone unheeded.
“Nampally had water bodies called Afzalsagar and Mallakunta. Now, Afzalsagar is a slum area while Mallakunta is the area behind the Exhibition Ground. All the areas that had kunta/cheruvu/katta as appendage were water bodies. Most of them have disappeared due to urbanisation,” says Anant Maringanti of Hyderabad Urban Labs.
“The natural drainage system of the land has been disturbed. The chain of tanks and streams that connected them has been disrupted leading to blockages. Compounding the matter is climate change. Earlier, we had rainfall spread over a few hours. Now there is a heavy downpour for a few hours leading to flooding. Unless we improve our urban infrastructure with planning, we will have to live with this,” said Mr. Ahmed.
