HYDERABAD: To give statutory backing to the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Assets Monitoring Protection Agency (HYDRAA), the state government will come out with an ordinance next month, HYDRAA Commissioner A V Ranganath said on Saturday.
He said that the powers under Water, Land and Trees (WALTA) Act, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act, Irrigation Act etc will be delegated to HYDRAA.
The government is right now working on the ordinance. Once it is cleared in the cabinet, it will be promulgated by the Governor. The HYDRAA will then have special authority similar to Greyhounds and Task Force. The ordinance is expected to be passed in the Assembly in its next session.
Ranganth said that HYDRAA was established by an executive order - GO 99 (July 19, 2024) and clarified that it is incorrect to say that the agency lacked legal sanction. “HYDRAA is operating within the ambit of the law. The agency has been facing criticism, with some individuals even taking the matter to the High Court, alleging that HYDRAA is illegal,” he said.
Addressing a conference organised by the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Association of India (CREDAI), he said that even in the past several legal bodies were constituted through an executive resolution like the Planning Commission which was formed in March 1950, the Cabinet Secretariat, the Law Commission, Anti-Corruption Bureau, Vigilance and Enforcement, just to name a few.
He said, “We don’t issue any notices to the violators. It is being circulated that HYDRAA issues notices. It will get into action after notices are served by various government departments such as GHMC, Irrigation, Revenue and Urban Local Bodies,” Ranganath said and likened the agency to Task Force, Greyhounds and such groups which support the police.
HYDRAA is mainly looking into two issues - disaster management and asset protection. Disaster management involves dealing with waterlogging. There are some 141 serious water logging points and 343 areas prone to inundations in the jurisdiction of the Hyderabad police commissionerate. Several areas were inundated leading to traffic snarls. After experiencing these problems, the state government has constituted the HYDRAA. Public assets like lakes, nalas, government lands, parks, layouts meant for public use or common places or roads or traffic related encroachments are all within the domain of HYDRAA.