HYDERABAD: A bench of the Telangana High Court, comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice T Vinod Kumar on Thursday instructed the Lake Protection Committee to issue notifications for the Full Tank Level (FTL) buffer zones of all water bodies within Hyderabad city to protect them from illegal constructions and encroachments. Buffer Zones of water bodies in Hyderabad.
The committee, which was established under GO 157 by the State government 15 years ago, was directed to file a progress report by August 11, 2023. The bench also criticised officials of the Irrigation and Revenue departments for their negligence in addressing illegal construction on water bodies.
The court was particularly upset at the construction of an auditorium and additional classrooms by the National Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management within the buffer zone of the Ramammakunta Lake in Gachibowli, in direct contravention of Supreme Court orders. The court was hearing a PIL filed by the Human Rights and Consumer Protection Cell Trust.
During the hearing, Advocate General BS Prasad informed the court that the construction was nearly complete and all required permissions had been secured. He sought the lifting of the status quo orders to complete the construction “for the benefit of students enrolled in the institution”.
After reviewing the FTL map of Ramannakunta Lake, Chief Justice Aardhe observed that only a small portion of the building encroached upon and amended the status quo order. However, he directed the Lake Protection Committee to notify the FTL buffer zones of all water bodies in Hyderabad city by August 11, 2023.