Hyderabad: Shastripuram Colony in Rajendranagar constituency issues remain in limbo

Rajendranagar: It goes without saying that funds approved and meant for providing basic amenities, especially to address perennial issues, should be utilised at the earliest and to maximum extent to serve the purpose, instead of making it appear they are only on papers, while leaving the citizens to suffer in silence for years.

Shastripuram division, in Rajendranagar constituency, is a fit case of sewerage and foot-over-bride (FOB) are pending for four years, despite the junction development project being approved in 2017.

Only a year after the Shastripuram division (ward no. 58) came into being in 2016, a proposal for grade separator (ROB/RUB) project was tabled in the standing committee meeting in April 2017. It was approved on cost sharing basis between the civic body and the Railways, considering the plight of commuters, who have to wait for a long time at Uddamgadda to pass the railway halt.

The matter was again discussed on November 30 with a proposal of road widening for construction of ROB at Uddamgadda railway gate at Shastripuram. The next year another resolution was moved in the meeting which gave administrative sanction for ROB/RUB (at L.C.No.7 Udamgadda) at a cost of Rs. 71 crores, including land acquisition, in 2018-19 financial year.

However, no progress has been made since then. The need for ROB/RUB is pressing, as people of surrounding areas have to wait for at least half an hour to cross the railway halt at Uddamgadda.

The ward no.58 has 38,618 voters, including 20,005 men and 18,599 women. Railway halt is not the only issue that is hurting residents of Shastripuram Colony since several years. They have to contend with sewerage, and several streets are always filled with murky water overflowing from septic tanks.

"Lack of proper sewerage system in a 30-year- old HUDA approved layout colony makes it hard for the residents to cope with stink. The road leading to neighbouring Raghavendra Colony is always filled with murky water gushing out from septic tanks. The filth can be seen flowing all the time down the stretch.

If residents dare to venture out they can't return without a splash of murky water on their cloths if any vehicle rumbles past them. Despite repeatedly bringing the issues to notice of local representatives and officials, the situation remains unchanged," bemoaned Mohammed Imran, a resident of Shastripuram Colony.