GHMC gears up for mega survey

• One lakh personnel to be deployed
• Each enumerator to cover 20 to 25 houses
• Not more than 30 minutes to be spent at each house

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) would conduct the 'Intensive Household Survey' on August 19 under the civic body’s limits. Commissioner Somesh Kumar said that the one-day pilot project 'Samagraha Kutumba Survey' would be undertaken by one lakh people from different departments which includes college lecturers, teachers, junior assistants, etc.

The population in GHMC area is over 90 lakh. One lakh personnel would be covering 20 lakh households. Each enumerator would be covering 20-25 houses and collect data. Training would be given and not more than 30 minutes would be allotted for each house.

Earlier the GHMC was not ready to take up the survey citing lack of staff. However the decision to go ahead with the survey was taken in a meeting on Wednesday, in which Hyderabad Collector Mukesh Kumar Meena, zonal commissioners, additional commissioners, deputy commissioners, town planning officers and senior officials from the revenue department participated.

"The survey would help in conducting a comprehensive survey later as it would help in understanding the problems.”
It would give us the experience to know how many supervisors, enumerators would be needed and whether to carry out a police station wise survey or in any other way," said a senior official.

The survey holds a key as it would provide data on which decisions on contentious issues such as fee reimbursement for students, would be taken. It would also enable identification of locals who would be eligible for various welfare schemes.
A senior official of GHMC said that appropriate methodology was adopted in the survey so that clear identification of locals and non-locals were done.

The government has plans of making Hyderabad a slum-free city and providing free double-bedroom apartments to the poor.