Dewatering Hussain Sagar, a death knell for 40 villages

A death-knell for 40 villages. Over 40 downstream villages of the Musi River would be affected if the Hussain Sagar dewatering project takes place

• The Musi originated from Ananthagiri Hills in Vikarabad and makes journey of 166 miles till its confluence at Wadepalli village in Nalgonda district before joining the Krishna River
• Along the way, the Musi carries rain water to all downstream areas besides helping the filling up of Himayat Sagar and Osman Sagar together with all its small tributaries as well as to carry all flood flow during heavy rains.
• Starting from 1890 23 anuicuts were constructed to irrigate 25,000 acres but today 1.5 lakh acres is dependent on the Musi water for irrigation

Ever since the government decided to drain out the Hussain Sagar Lake’s water into Musi River, the people in downstream villages are on tenterhooks. Already suffering from the polluted Musi River water, the people of Chot Uppal, Bhongir, Hayatnagar, Ghatkesar, Bibinagar, Ramayanpet, Suryapet, Edulabad, Pochampally and scores of villages abutting the river are living in perpetual fear.

Dr Muthyam Reddy, retired Professor of Osmania University who completed a World Bank sponsored study backed by the Ministry of Forest & Environment, Govt of India a decade back, points, “The water was polluted and not fit to be consumed even in 2003 and the study showed that in a span of five year period the people of Edulabad and Pochampally spent Rs 45 lakh each to buy drinking water.

People are dependent on the Musi for cultivation and if the government lets out the polluted Hussain Sagar Lake water into the Musi it would sound the death-knell for almost 40 villages.” People in the villages are living in perpetual fear as they are already reeling under the affect of pollutants from the Musi. In several villages vegetable cultivation has stopped.

Dr Lubna Sarwath of Save Our Urban Lakes (SOUL) says that ever since the government announced its intentions of dewatering the Hussain Sagar lake, they have only been receiving distressed SOS calls from every villager. While the effects on health of people, cattle & crops has reached a tipping point, the gap between potential created and the Irrigation Potential Utilized (IPU) is immense, says Dr B V Subba Rao. Starting from 1890, 23 anuicuts were constructed to irrigate 25,000 acres but today 1.5 lakh acres is dependent on the Musi water.

Noted environmentalist, Prof. K Purushottam Reddy, said, “The need of the hour is for a holistic plan and to see that the natural inflow of water into the Musi is not hampered. The first priority should be to stop pollutants from entering into the Musi River.”

By:T P Venu