Bansilalpet stepwell opening: KTR emphasises community role to save historic structures

HYDERABAD: A city is more than just a few concrete structures, fly-overs, underbridges, underpasses, and tall buildings; it is also about its heritage structures, history, culture, and ancient inherited structures, which we were unable to protect since centuries, said Telangana IT and MA&UD minister K T Rama Rao on Monday.

Minister K T Rama Rao thanked everyone for their dedication and hard work in completing the rehabilitation of this step-well while addressing the crowd after officially opening the newly renovated Bansilalpet step-well on Monday evening.

While appealing to the Bansilal community, he said, "We are merely visitors who will visit this step-well on occasion, but it is you who will be living here permanently. So it is the responsibility of the community to save our heritage structures. I appeal to the community here to keep this step-well clean and hygienic rather than dumping garbage unlike it was done previously. Dumping garbage not only looks bad, but it also causes illnesses and other problems".

Talasani Srinivas Yadav, the minister for animal husbandry in Telangana, who was also present, was all praise for MA&UD Special Chief Secretary Arvind Kumar, who took charge of restoring not only the Bansilalpet step-well but also the beautifully renovated Mozamjahi Market, Gachibowli junction, Gandipet park, and many other beautiful structures in the city.

KTR also stated that the state government would restore many other old structures similar to this one, as suggested by Hyderabad Mayor Gadwal Vijayalakshmi, who noted that many other structures in the city, in fact 43 structures, require renovation.

The Bansilalpet step-well, often referred to as "Nagannakunta," is a prominent example of the Telangana region's history of water-centric human settlement development. This spectacular structure was in terrible shape, dilapidated, damaged, and covered in trash and litter.

The excavation of this step-well in Secunderabad necessitated the removal of almost 2,000 tonnes of trash that had been collected over the previous 40 years. Cleaning, dewatering, and desilting the stepwell, structurally strengthening the retaining walls, rebuilding and finishing works, etc. were all part of the restoration process.

The six-level stepwell, which can hold 35 lakh litres of rainwater annually, can significantly reduce urban flooding. Kalpana, who runs the Rainwater Project, had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Telangana government to restore the stepwell in 2021.

The Bansilal step-well, which now has an amphi-theatre and a tourism plaza, was renovated at a cost of Rs 2.3 cores. A cafe and other shops are also slated to open soon.