Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and Hyderabad Disaster Management and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) have accelerated efforts to tackle recurring flooding in Ameerpet and Maitrivanam, locations which experience heavy waterlogging during heavy downpour.
On Thursday, August 21, GHMC Commissioner RV Karnan, HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath, Zonal Commissioner Anurag Jayanthi, Chief Engineer Sahadev Ratnakar, and technical advisers toured flood canals in front of Ameerpet Metro Station and Maitrivanam.
They examined the obstruction in the canal system and carried out field exercises to identify long-term flood management strategies.
Narrowed flood canals behind waterlogging
The authorities recorded that the primary reason for the overflow is the narrowing of the flood canals. The canals, which were 40 feet wide in the beginning, have narrowed to a mere 10 feet at Ameerpet main road and SR Nagar main road, forming critical bottlenecks during rain. The system drains runoff from Jubilee Hills, Venkatagiri, Rahmat Nagar, Yusufguda and Krishna Kanth Park before merging into the nala at Gayatri Nagar. Aided by inflows from Madhuranagar and Srinivas Nagar West, Ameerpet Metro and Maitrivanam are repeatedly inundated.
Maitrivanam drain
Earlier this week, GHMC Commissioner RV Karnan visited the Maitrivanam drain, while HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath went to flood canals near Ameerpet and the Krishna Kanth Park pond. As a temporary measure, HYDRAA proposed diverting excess floodwater to the Krishna Kanth Park pond.
HYDRAA is looking to expand the pond from the existing 7 acres to 12 acres, which would be able to hold up to 120 million litres of water at the height of rainfall and release it slowly once the rain recedes. Officials are of the view that this move would curb waterlogging to a certain degree.
Chief minister Revanth Reddy has also instructed the establishment of a special trunk line to ensure that flooding at Ameerpet Metro Station and Maitrivanam is permanently avoided.
GHMC, HYDRAA plan drain re-modelling
Along with mapping diversion routes, GHMC and HYDRAA are also making plans for end-to-end re-modelling of drains to expand shrunk canals and clear blockages. Officials were emphatic that long-term fixes must be in place to prevent Hyderabad’s commercial and residential hubs in Ameerpet and Maitrivanam from being crippled by monsoon flooding.
