Public Gardens’ Lake to be Restored in June
Visitors and Daily walkers at the park, who often complained to officials about the poor maintenance and foul smell from the polluted water, have expressed relief.
Hyderabad: After lying neglected for several years, the over 150-year-old lake at the Public Gardens is being restored to its original glory. The work is undertaken by the Environmental Foundation of India (EFI), as part of its CSR initiative, with the support of the state horticulture department.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Arun Krishnamurthy, the founder of EFI, said, “In line with Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy’s commitment to environmental conservation, we have taken up the initiative to restore the lakes and the Public Gardens lake is our first project.”
The restoration work includes removing invasive weeds, desilting one metre of sludge from the lake, and installing 20 panels and a twin-aerator system to clean the water. “With an estimated budget of Rs.34.50 lakh, the first phase of restoration is expected to be completed by the end of June,” said Arun Krishnamurthy.
Visitors and Daily walkers at the park, who often complained to officials about the poor maintenance and foul smell from the polluted water, have expressed relief.
Syed Hashim Adil, a daily walker, said, “There are very few lung spaces in Hyderabad, and Public Garden is one of the oldest among them. The restoration of the lake needs to be completed fast, which has been neglected for years.”
“Earlier, the lake used to receive water from the Hussainsagar lake, which subsequently flowed into the Musi river. But the water flow from Hussainsagar stopped after the pipeline broke, and the lake dried up,” said a local Shiva Kumar Mudhiraj.
The footfall has decreased to the garden earlier. Earlier, many people used to come to the Public Gardens for recreational activities like boating. The government has to take interest and restore the past glory of Public Gardens,” he said.
“Now water is seen in the lake only during the rainy season,” said A.R.Sadanand, a walker from the past 15 years. “The lake behind the Bal Bhavan is closed due to some reasons. We have given so many complaints to horticulture officials, but of no use,” he added.
“The lake was restored about 10 years back, but it went into a neglected state. We are happy that work is now taken up. When a huge amount is spent for the works, it has to be maintained properly and an official should be appointed to take care of it,” said Manilal Shah, President of Public Gardens Walkers Association.
