HYDERABAD: Does the G.O. 111, which might be repealed in future, have enough safeguards built into it to protect the two great water bodies — Osmansagar and Himayatsagar in Hyderabad from pollution?
Water management experts and environmentalists argue that the government, instead of scrapping the G.O 111, should enlarge its scope further to an area of 2,076 sq km covering the origin of the Musi at Vikarabad and Damagundam.
“Now that abolition of G.O 111 is on the cards, we must demand that instead of just saving the catchment area of this reservoir, we must demand measures to save the catchment of the entire Musi which flows upto the reservoirs. The catchment area protected under G.O 111 is only 10% of Musi river’s entire catchment,” explained BV Subba Rao, Technical Member, Reservoirs and Lakes, Water Domain, BIS India.
He demanded all this be declared “Green Conservation Zone” where only ecologically safe activities are allowed.
The main reason for mooting this point was to ensure that the entire catchment area of Musi upto the reservoir stays clean and fit for drinking. Subba Rao and environmentalist Purushottam Reddy also questioned the competence of the government in securing the two reservoirs if G.O 111 was repealed. “There is sufficient evidence in history to show that the Hussainsagar, Mir Alam, Kamuni Cheruvu, Durgam Cheruvu etc which once supplied water to various parts of Hyderabad turned into sewage-filled lakes. What assurance do we have that these two reservoirs to won’t turn to similar stinking water bodies. In fact crores of rupees had been spent on Hussainsagar and it still stinks,” said Subba Rao.
Meanwhile, describing the two water bodies as heritage, Anuradha Reddy of INTACH urged the government to protect the 100-year-old reservoirs which in turn would safeguard the city.