Bengaluru engineers visit Hyderabad to study HYDRAA’s lake restoration works; lauds efforts

Hyderabad: A team of engineers from the Bengaluru Lakes Department visited Hyderabad to study the lake restoration and protection works undertaken by HYDRAA.

The team appreciated HYDRAA’s initiatives, stating that such an institution is needed in every state to protect water bodies and prevent urban flooding.

Visited historic lakes in Old City and Amberpet

The Karnataka delegation, comprising Chief Engineer Haridasu and Executive Engineers Nithya, Bhooprada, and Mahadeva, inspected various lakes in the city, including the historic Bum-Rukn Ud-Dowla Lake in the Old City and Bathukamma Kunta in Amberpet.

They examined the measures taken to remove encroachments and restore lakes that had dried up due to neglect and pollution.

Impressed by restoration of Bathukamma Kunta

The engineers expressed keen interest in the restoration of Bathukamma Kunta, which was earlier completely covered with wild bushes and weeds.

They enquired about the challenges faced during encroachment clearance and learnt about the origin of the name “Bathukamma Kunta” and the history of how it was filled up over the years. The team appreciated HYDRAA’s efforts to revive the lake to its original glory.

Recognition for preserving historical significance

At Bum-Rukn Ud-Dowla Lake, the engineers learnt about its historical significance, where herbal plants and tree branches were used for water purification, and the well beneath the lake provided drinking water to the Nizam Nawabs. They lauded HYDRAA for restoring such culturally and historically important water bodies.

HYDRAA’s model needed across India

Later, the Karnataka team met Hydra Commissioner AV Ranganath. “We had heard about Hydra and read about it in newspapers, but now we are witnessing its effective work directly. Protecting lakes, nalas, and public lands from encroachments is a challenging task, yet Hydra has managed to sensitize people about FTL and buffer zones in a short time,” they observed.

The team shared that in Bengaluru, lake boundaries have been demarcated and fenced since 2006 to prevent encroachments. They added that encroachment of canals is the primary reason for floods and the Karnataka government is working on measures to resolve this issue soon.

Token of appreciation

The engineers presented Commissioner Ranganath with a photo frame containing pictures of his visit to Bengaluru’s lakes and concluded by reiterating that “an institution like HYDRAA is essential in every state to protect water bodies for sustainable urban development.”