Hyderabad: Appa Cheruvu Lake poses risk as cracks reappear on bund post showers

Hyderabad: On the side-lines of the pandemic, several lakes in the city and outskirts turned vulnerable to calamity with bunds. These lakes were temporarily repaired last year and now have developed significant cracks again in recent rains and if gone unnoticed will cause havoc similar to last year when several people lost their lives in the deluge.

One among them is the Appa Cheruvu Lake at Gagan Pahad under Rajendranagar where an intended threat is peeping through the cracks being developed on the bund due to the recent rains. The bund that receives a pattern of cracks every few meters was left unattended after being built temporarily last year. The landslides down to ground at least three locations on both sides of the slopes of the bund while the lake is still brimmed.

Only last year the Appa Cheruvu Lake bund – that spreads over 40 acres of area, received breaches due to incessant rains and eventually broke apart leaving several families washed away on the unfaithful day of September 13th, 2020. This tragedy claimed the lives of five people as the broken bund flushed out several houses in the nearby neighbourhood. Later, the irrigation authorities took up temporary repair and restoration works with only landfilling to raise the bund height. The colonies that stand immediately to the lake include Metro Hills and Dream Monarch and other surrounding areas of Gagan Pahad.

"We learnt from the local people that the bund received breaches again and accordingly we are planning to visit the lake tomorrow. As there are no proposals presently sanctioned for any works at the lake, we would try to take stock of the damage caused to the bund and submit a report to higher-ups," informed Vishwam, AEE Irrigation Wing, (GHMC).

As per the official record, there are a total of 14 water bodies in and around the city that received breaches due to floods last year. Brahmana Kunta, Brahman Cheruvu, Appa Cheruvu, Palle Cheruvu, Mamidla Kunta, ErraKunta, and Gurrum Cheruvu are among the water bodies that were breached the previous year. Among them, the Brahmana Kunta, Brahman Cheruvu, and Appa Cheruvu falls under the Rajendranagar area while Palle Cheruvu shares the area boundaries with Bandlaguda of Chandrayangutta.

"As there is a prediction of more rains in the days to come in the city and the outskirts due to recurrent cyclones in the western part of the country, the development of breaches on the bund of Appa Cheruvu would wreak havoc just like last year when many lives were ravaged due to flood in the same lake. The breaches need immediate repair works to save lives," felt Sai Mallik, GHMC Ward Member Budvel-60.