HMWSSB builds artificial pond in Kalabgoor as punishment for constructing STP in buffer zone

HYDERABAD: The Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) have made the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) construct a new seven-acre pond in Kalabgoor in Sangareddy district under the Manjeera command area as a punishment for constructing a Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP) under Lingamkunta buffer zone in Patancheru.

The Supreme Court and the NGT finally gave relief to the water board after it had built a new pond twice the size of the Lingamkunta pond that it had inadvertently damaged. The relief orders came after the water board submitted its report to the Apex Court and the tribunal.

The problem started after the HMWSSB constructed an STP next to a 3.5-acre Lingamkunta freshwater pond in Patancheru on the outskirts of Hyderabad. However, the NGT took note of the impact of the STP on the water body that supplied drinking water to the Patancheru area and ordered the water board to construct another pond twice the size of the pond that it had affected.

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However, the water board appealed to the Supreme Court for relief but the Supreme Court upheld the NGT's decision and ordered construction of a new pond on seven acres on August 9, 2022. The water board then awarded the contract to a company through an e-tender on October 10, 2022.

A new pond was dug and filled with water in Kalabgoor at a cost of Rs.9.8 crore. After inspecting the pond, a committee appointed by the Supreme Court expressed satisfaction. The decision of the Supreme Court would be a torch bearer in protecting the delicate environment surrounding natural water bodies in Telangana, which were either encroached upon or polluted with industrial waste.

Environmentalists expressed hope that the Supreme Court's decision would serve as a wake-up call for those who illegally occupy these natural resources.