HYDERABAD: Apparently wary of the possible political backlash ahead of the election to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is understood to have decided against making any announcement on the removal of illegal constructions on lake beds and nalas.
There are about 28,000 such unauthorised structures, according to a recent study conducted by Voyants Consultancy for the Telangana government. KCR on Thursday reviewed the ravage wreaked by the recent floods, which was a reminder of The Great Deluge of Noah’s days. He circumambulated Hyderabad’s crying need for the removal of encroachments to allow free flow of floodwater into tanks and lakes. As a band-aid measure, however, he announced Rs 5 crore for the GHMC and Rs 5 lakh to the kin of each of those who died in the floods.
The unremitting agony that the people went through after the heavens opened up and poured down sheets of rain on Hyderabad is a chilling reminder that any more delay in addressing the problem would be nothing but inviting another disaster — one that’s much worse than what the Telangana capital witnessed on Tuesday.
But politically shrewd as always, the Chief Minister knew that he should not stir the hornet’s nest now as it is time for him to endear himself to the people and capture the GHMC, which would set the tone for the next Assembly election in 2023. Any setback that he might suffer, if he gets around to the removal of encroachments, might derail the TRS apple cart. The domino effect, once it begins, would be difficult to rein in, even for KCR who is an accomplished leader in the political craft.
At the review, the Chief Minister had promised to build new houses for those who have been rendered homeless due to the rain, and rugs as winter is slowly setting in. In fact, he admitted that the houses which got inundated were those constructed within the full tank level (FTL) of lakes. This drove home the point that had these structures not been permitted in the first place, the travails of the people would have been minimised. Also, it appeared as though KCR did not want to ruffle the sentiments of his ally, AIMIM, which operates mostly in the Old City where the number of encroachments high.