For the residents of Pochamma Basti at Punjagutta, the much-publicised slogan of ‘Saaf Hyderabad-Shandaar Hyderabad’ coined by the GHMC is just that – a slogan.
For close to a week, they have been grappling with unimaginable drainage stink and a road, which is not even fit for walking, let alone driving.
For this street, a few metres away from National Highway-9 and close to the upmarket commercial hub of Punjagutta-Ameerpet-Somajiguda, drainage issues are not new.
Sewage water accumulates on the road preferred by pedestrians walking from Punjagutta Metro Rail Station towards Somajiguda, almost throughout the year.
“Water board workers come and clear the pipeline when we complain. But within a few days, the situation goes back to square one. Drainage flow from the hotels on the main road are choking the pipelines,” said Praveen Kumar, a stationary wholesaler on the stretch.
The road being dug up by the GHMC staff about a week ago has only worsened the situation. The erstwhile CC road has totally been dug up by the corporation to lay a fresh road. “They carried away truckloads of large concrete blocks, but left behind the rubble that have filled the manholes. They, in fact, dumped rubble in one manhole to close it so that a truck can pass,” said P. Sujatha, a home-maker. As a result, the sewerage lines have been choked, spilling back the drainage water onto the road. The water that is entering into a construction site on the location is being pumped back onto the road, making it a virtual cesspool over which pedestrians are forced to test their jumping skills! “They dug up the road and never returned to complete the work. Even the manholes are left open. Scared that our children might fall in them, we are keeping our gates locked. It stinks all the time, and mosquito menace has worsened. Just imagine our plight if it rains now!” asks Ms. Sujatha.
S. Navaneela, who owns a grocery store on the stretch, shows the wash area inside her house, which is filled with reverse flow of sewage.
“The water board lineman says the road needs to be cleared before they can repair the pipelines. What if there is a disease outbreak before that?” Ms. Navaneela questions.
The General Manager of Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB), M. Prabhu, attributed the issue to the vertical growth of the locality, which has rendered the eight-inch pipelines obsolete.
“We have submitted proposals for their replacement with 12-inch pipelines, with an overall cost estimate of ₹45 lakh,” Mr. Prabhu said, while claiming that temporary repairs have been carried out after the GHMC’s digging operation.