Hyderabad: Alleged gross negligence of the municipality is causing residents of Devinagar anxiety over the quality of water they are forced to consume. Residents claim that the Ramakrishnapuram Lake is contaminated and now with the rains, this contamination has seeped into the groundwater.
When the borewell motors are switched on, an inexplicable and terrible foul smell emanates from the water. While they await municipal action on this, residents are using bleaching powder to combat the foul smell and discoloration.
Says Devinagar resident T. Madhusudhan Rao, "I had alerted the GHMC last week about the foul smell of the groundwater. They checked the manholes near my house, suspecting them to be clogged and even checked for leakage of sewage drains, but there was nothing. The lake has polluted the groundwater", he said.
For the last couple of weeks, the lake water has been frothing, evidently from some effluents released into it recently. Says area corporator K. Sridevi "Sewerage dumping was the main cause of the frothing of the lake water. The storm-water drain, which carries the excess lake water, has been under repair for the past 2 weeks. A giant ditch has been dug up for the repair, but that is filled with toxic and frothing sewage water. When we informed the municipality, they said diverting the sewage is an expensive affair for which they had no funds."
Meanwhile as the municipality sources funds, residents continue to bear the brunt of bad management. Complained Mr D.S. Kantum who has been a resident of the area for 30 years, "When we switch on the motor, the smell is unbearable."
Experts say the illegal construction near the lake has aggravated the sewage pollution since the outlet level and ground level of the homes are same. Some of the constructions date back to 30-40 years and many of them are extremely close to the lake, leaving no space for the excess water to drain out comfortably.
Civic body yet to act on foaming RK puram lake
Even as Devinagar residents await a positive and effective move by the municipality, to check the inflow of the polluted lake water into the groundwater, fresh incidents involving the pollutant lake water has emerged.
Froth or soapy foam from the RK Puram lake started flying on to the narrow road at Devinagar on Tuesday. “Foam can be a serious hazard as it hampers the vision of the commuters. Inhaling it can be extremely dangerous”, said Mr B.V. Subba Rao, environmentalist and lake conservationist who is working on the Bellandur Lake in Bengaluru.
Pollution Control Board official Kumar Pathak said, “We have sent samples to analysts, and expect a report in 10 days.” He was unaware of what could be done to control the frothing. Said Mr Subba Rao, “A report 10 days later won't resolve the situation.
To know the chemical composition of the lake, we need a catchment area profile, which is not available.” He said that foam is formed when the water moves with speed. To prevent the foam from forming, the height differentials must be levelled and a cover must be organised
