Hyderabadis raise alarm over encroached stormwater drains as monsoon sets in, complain to HYDRAA

Hyderabad: As monsoon clouds gather over Hyderabad, a growing number of city residents are sounding the alarm that their homes, streets and neighbourhoods are under threat, not from rain alone, but from something more preventable: encroachments on the city’s stormwater drains.

On Monday, HYDRAA’s Prajavani grievance program, held on Telangana Formation Day, received as many as 23 complaints, of which nearly 70 per cent were about blocked, narrowed or illegally occupied nalas (stormwater drains).

HYDRAA additional commissioner V Papaiah received the grievances and these complaints reflect a broader anxiety among residents: when the drains don’t function, the city floods and homes, cars and livelihoods suffer.

Flooding begins at home

Residents of Brindavan Apartments in Chikoti Gardens, Begumpet, are living in fear every time it rains.

A narrowed storm drain near their building has already caused severe flooding. In 2020, their cellar was completely submerged. With the nala still encroached, the risk remains dangerously high. “We can’t keep pumping water out every year,” said a worried resident. “We need a permanent solution before the next big rain hits.”

Seven colonies face potential flooding

In Kukatpally, people living around Rangadhamauni Lake reported that not only is the lake’s boundary (FTL) being encroached, but the critical drain that connects it to IDL Lake has also been taken over. The result? Seven surrounding colonies now sit in the direct path of potential flooding.

Similar stories are emerging from Hasmathpet and Picket, where residents of Paigah Colony, Viman Nagar, BHEL Colony, Avanti Colony, and Rasoolpura Basti say narrowing drains are already causing water to back up into their streets and homes.

GHMC keeps ignoring

In Saidatta Gardens, Bhoodevinagar, a 225-square-yard site was allocated in 2004 for a community hall. But it’s now reportedly been encroached.

Residents say repeated appeals to GHMC have gone unanswered

The same frustration is echoed in Khanamet village, where locals allege roads and plots in a decades-old Gurukula Trust layout have been illegally occupied.

In Saidabad and Balaji Nagar, the Balaji Nagar Welfare Association highlighted how key stormwater canals have been choked. Overflow from a nearby lake that’s supposed to pass through Adarsh Nagar to Saroornagar Lake is now spilling into slums due to a blocked water path.

What do residents want now?

Across neighbourhoods, citizens are asking for the same things:

- Immediate removal of encroachments on stormwater drains and lakes.

- Restoration of natural drain width and flow.

- A proactive flood management system is needed before heavy rains arrive.