HYDERABAD: The National Green Tribunal has directed various bodies of the Telangana government - Telangana State Pollution Control Board, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority, Lake Protection Committee, and Irrigation Department - to come up with a common action plan to protect the Ameenpur Lake and around 18 other lakes located in its catchment area.
It directed for these directions to be communicated to the Telangana Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary of the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department. The NGT pointed out that while the CS had filed a detailed statement in the last hearing - that necessary instructions have been given regarding protection of the lakes - no further action taken report has been filed yet by the State’s machineries. Pointing this out, NGT has asked for a status report.
As part of the NGT’s directions issued earlier in the matter, the TSPCB conducted inspection of Ameenpur Lake and 18 other lakes in its catchment area. Ahead of the World Environment Day on June 2, the TSPCB report reflects the poor state of many other lakes in Hyderabad. Ameenpur Lake was declared as a Biodiversity Heritage Site in 2016. The NGT has directed that all the reports have to be submitted before the next hearing on June 29.