Hyderabad: The case of the N-Convention encroaching on the Thammidi Kunta lake clearly reflects the government’s preferential treatment for some. The earlier exclusion of N-Convention was deliberately designed to favour prominent and influential citizens, say experts.
Environmentalist Dr Lubna Sarwath said that the Full Tank Level of a water body is a design parameter that is defined at its birth. However, the Thammidi Kunta lake has been given three different FTLs on different occasions.
The first survey was issued by the MRO of Serilingampally, the second was prepared by Arvee Consultants hired by GHMC (or HMDA) and the third was carried out by GHMC on June 28. While estimates of the first and second surveys are in the same range of 29 acres, the one carried out by a team of private consultants had put it at 25.5 acres. This had excluded the N-Convention Centre from any encroachment unlike the other two estimates.
S. Jeevanand Reddy, a city-based lake expert who has been fighting for more than 900 lake enforcements, said, “An encroacher cannot escape punishment just because he is an actor, politician or any influential person. Firstly, rules needs to be followed, one cannot violate GO 111 (from the FTL of the lake, a 10-km radius is the catchment area, 95 per cent of which should be kept for agriculture). In violation of the GO, both the government and private bodies should be taken to task. Why is there a huge difference between the surveys conducted by the government? When the rules are same for all, why is there is a delay in taking action on N-Convention? Marriage schedules cannot be the reason and why was no action taken previously when it was mentioned that it had encroached on the buffer zone? Politicians and bureaucrats are hand in glove with encroachers”.
“The regularisation scheme was first introduced during the Telugu Desam regime and the next government continued the same. The scheme is nothing but a money making racket. Though the municipal authorities earn heavily, it encourages violators to continue illegal encroachment. The regularisation scheme should be stopped,” added Mr Reddy.
Irrespective of the ownership of land inside the FTL limits, the owner cannot use land for any construction, dumping, leveling, and change of contours, as per the Telangana Act. The government should apply the same principles for all encroachments of water bodies in Hyderabad.
The exclusion of N-Convention was deliberately designed to favour prominent and influential citizens. It seems that the law does not apply equally to all, add experts.
