Telangana Announces Ex-gratia to Kin of 3 Missing

Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Monday announced an ex gratia of Rs.5 lakh each for the families of three people who were washed away by floods. In two separate incidents in Asif Nagar and Musheerabad, three people – Arjun, 26, his nephew Ramu, 25, and Dinesh alias Sunny, 26 – went missing after being swept away by floodwaters that entered their areas.

HYDRAA’s Disaster Response Force (DRF) and MET teams continued search operations to trace them. At Asif Nagar, locals told Deccan Chronicle that floodwaters entered slum houses, sweeping away belongings. In one such attempt to retrieve a folding bed that was being carried away by the current, Arjun called Ramu for help. Both were pulled into the surging waters and swept into a nala. “The flow suddenly increased and carried them away,” said Mohammed Faizal, a resident.

In Musheerabad’s Vinobhanagar, Dinesh was washed away after the retaining wall of a nala collapsed. His mother recalled that he went to a friend’s house to collect items around 7 pm. “He put a rice bag on his scooter when the wall collapsed. The floodwater dragged him and the scooter into the nala,” she said tearfully. Dinesh’s bike has since been recovered, but there is no trace of him.

Four DRF teams are continuing the search for the three men. Families are holding on to hope, though many fear the worst. Both Arjun and Ramu leave behind two children each, while Dinesh is survived by a two-year-old child. “Once Arjun fell, my husband tried to pull him back, but he too was swept away. I recently gave birth, and now I must raise my children alone,” Ramu’s wife said, struggling to contain her grief.

Hyderabad collector Hari Chandana confirmed that the government had sanctioned ex gratia relief and said rescue operations were ongoing. HYDRAA commissioner A.V. Ranganath, inspecting the site, said most houses in Afsal Sagar, Asif Nagar, had been built on or along the open drain line, obstructing natural water flow. “At one stretch, a house built directly on the drain forces the water into a sharp 90-degree turn, causing severe backflow and inundation,” he explained.

He assured residents that only problematic structures would be removed. “Some women feared all houses would be demolished. That is not the case. We will conduct a study and remove only those structures that are creating immediate hazards,” Ranganath said.