The old road connecting Karimnagar to Hyderabad, which was submerged under the waters of Lower Manair Dam (LMD) reservoir four decades ago, has resurfaced following the depleting water levels due to drought in Karimnagar town.
The first road from Karimnagar to Hyderabad, which passes through Alugunur village after the ancient bridge constructed by the Nizams on the outskirts of the town, and reaches Nusthullapur, was submerged in LMD reservoir. The resurfacing of the old road in the dam shows the severity of the prevailing drought in the district.
One of the biggest major irrigation project across the Manair constructed from 1974 to 1985, which has a storage capacity of 24 tmcs of water, has now come down to 3.383 tmcs of water. The dead storage is 2.2 tmcs of water.
The depletion of water table at the reservoir is ringing alarm bells among the authorities concerned over the supply of drinking water for the ensuing summer season.
The reservoir provides drinking water to Karimnagar, Warangal, Siddipet, Sircilla, Vemulawada, and other villages.
On the other hand, senior citizens of the town, who had travelled on the ancient road, are seen recollecting their sweet memories of travelling on the old road and the construction of the reservoir four decades ago. They also recalled how the face of the Karimnagar district has changed with the completion of the LMD reservoir.
Expressing concern over depleting water table in the reservoir, retired superintendent of LMD Gotte Narayan Prakash said that the old road from Karimnagar to Hyderabad was a straight road from Alugunur village. However, following its submergence, the road was diverted by additional seven kilometres distance, he added. He still remembers how he learned to drive jeep on this old road when there was no traffic, and how sand was transported from Moyathummeda vagu for the construction of a temple at LMD Colony.
The old road is still intact in spite of being submerged for over four decades. That is the quality of work maintained during those days.N. Srinivas
Senior citizen
