Over 10 Gachibowli colonies cut off due to delayed naala work

HYDERABAD: The haphazard and unplanned way in which GHMC officials built PJR Colony in Gachibowli has come back to haunt them, delaying works on Barlakunta naala due to contractors abandoning the job.

The naala, one of the biggest in Gachibowli, got blocked due to heavy rains in October, 2017, bringing the whole of the West Zone to its heels. To prevent a repeat, naala widening works have been taken up upstream, including near PJR Colony, which stands on the natural channel of the water.

“The drain is being built both for incoming and outgoing water flow and so the entire width of the road has been dug up, leaving no space for residents to ride a two-wheeler or walk,” said Sampoorna Reddy, a resident.

There are over 10 colonies in the bylane adjacent to Gachibowli flyover and none of them have access to the main road. The residents have now put a few planks over the 10-feet-wide naala to get to their homes.
Meanwhile, GHMC officials say nothing much can be done as the naala is crucial and a road needs to be built over it. “The colony has come up on the channel of the naala flowing downstream. So the area gets flooded up during the raiy season. The entire project is highly complex and full of bottlenecks,” said a senior official from the projects wing.

Attributing the delay to the complexity of the project and contractors jumping ship, he said, “The nature of work is complex, moreover, every time it rains, workers either quit work or delaying the process.” Officials Express spoke to said half the road would be ready in a month, the other side would take five more months.