Post on 17-Oct-2021
As part of the Water Security in Peri-urban South Asia
Project, the Hyderabad team organised a week-long
series of stakeholders meetings, interactions, and
awareness programmes across the field villages.
Stakeholders meetings were organised in 3 villages
namely, Aliabad, Ravirala, and Mallampet near
Hyderabad, during 30th April-2nd May, 2011. Apart from
the village locals, various other stakeholders like the
sarpanch, director of water users association, water plant
owners, farmers, representations from watershed
committee, gated-community, self-help groups, village
secretary, ward members, and activists were part of these
meetings.
A six month long exploratory phase - the scoping study,
looked at specific problems of select villages in terms of
competing users of water due to urbanization and the
likely impact of climate change. The prime objective of
the stakeholders meetings was to share findings from the
scoping study to the community and hear their opinions
regarding it. It also provided a good platform to
understand perspectives and receive suggestions by
varied stakeholders regarding possible interventions
that could be undertaken in the village. Discussions on
local capacity building were understood and avenues for
collaborating with relevant organizations explored.
Through these discussions, the locals shared many issues
and problems, especially related to the quality and
availability of the water sources. Groundwater in few of
the villages is unfit – not just for drinking but also for
agriculture purposes since it is highly polluted. Water
channels that help in filling of the nearby lake are
encroached upon, leading to the surface water bodies
almost never filling up. Since water canals to the village
bring water to the fields only when the lakes are full, the
village cannot even rely on surface water for its
agricultural needs. This is threatening the livelihoods of
farmers to a large extent, who are usually forced to sell
their lands to private developers which is far more
profitable as these peri-urban areas are very sought after
for real estate development. Apart from this, effluents
from industries contribute to a lot of surface and ground
water pollution. Rampant sand mining is also taking
place in two villages which has affected the sub surface
water flow which is one of the reasons why the lakes are
shrinking. Other problems emerge due to improper water
management, lack of any village level functional
committee looking at the problems, and ensuing local
political dynamics and vested interests by the powerful.
However, the underlying point in every meeting was the
fact that the villagers were very open to support and
cooperate with the project team and ensure that some
concrete actions are taken to improve their present
situation. Based on these discussions and suggestions,
the team has charted out its future plan of action and
STAKEHOLDERS MEETINGS AND AWARENESS PROGRAMMESIN PERI-URBAN HYDERABAD
April 30th-May 6th, 2011
interventions for each village so that there are some
significant ways that the issues at the ground level
are addressed.
The week concluded with awareness programmes
that were organised in each of the villages in the
form of street plays. Highlighting issues of
urbanisation, water security, pollution, and
implications due to the changing climate, the
cultural group creatively explained these issues to
large audiences in all the villages.
Following is the village-wise detailed report on the
three meetings conducted:
Ÿ To share findings of the scoping study and hear
views of local stakeholders with regard to our
findings
Ÿ To seek the support of locals to carry out research
and investigate in the village for the next 2 years
Ÿ To understand their perspectives and suggestions
with regard to possible interventions that could
be undertaken in the village
Ÿ To understand in what way local capacity
building and strengthening is required and
identify avenues for collaboration
Ÿ To address the concerns of stakeholders and
discuss and deliberate upon the issues related to
water and discuss plausible adaptive processes
Ÿ Welcome and Introduction
Ÿ Background on SaciWATERs and the Peri-urban
Project
Ÿ Sharing objectives of the stakeholders meeting
and issues identified in the scoping study
Ÿ Interaction and discussion with the participants
Ÿ Action Points for further course of action
Ÿ Conclusion and vote of thanks
OBJECTIVES OF THE MEETING
AGENDA
STAKEHOLDERS MEETING - ALIABAD
Date: 30th April, 2011Time: 4pm-6pm
Venue: Vrindavan Resorts, Shamirpet
FINDINGS FROM THE SCOPING STUDY
For Aliabad, the findings were as follows:
Ÿ It is largely an agricultural village with some
households engaged in the manufacturing and service
sector in Hyderabad
Ÿ The farmers are dependent on Shamirpet Lake for
irrigation but it is never full enough to be utilised for
this purpose. The channel constructed to bring water
from the lake now runs almost dry showing the impact
of the changing climate, rainfall and recharge
patterns
Ÿ Water for irrigation is thus, currently available from
groundwater and drawn through bores that are 400 ft
deep. Water intensive crops like paddy are grown1
Ÿ No Manjira drinking water connection available and
water for drinking is available through bores installed
by the panchayat which is stored in tanks and water is
pumped and supplied for 6-7 hours daily to different
areas of the village
Ÿ Special Economic Zones (SEZs), Commercial and
r e s i d e n t i a l c o m p l e x e s a n d g o v e r n m e n t
establishments like an Air force base surround this
area – bringing in competing users for the same
available water
Smt K Bhagya Rekha
NameS.No.
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List of Participants
2MPDO - Shamirpet
Designation
Sri B Raghava Reddy
Sri B Rami Reddy
Ex-Sarpanch
Director - Farmers Cooperative Society
Sri G Prabhakar Reddy Director, Water User Association-Aliabad
Sri K Krishna Reddy Vice-Sarpanch
Sri P Raghupathi Sharma 3MPTC -I, Ex-President of Watershed Committee
Sri Raghuram Goud MPTC-II, Advocate
Smt Amrutha4Village Book Keeper- Velugu Project
Sri Gadhe Sathaiah Ward Member
Smt Andalu Village Organisation Representative- Velugu Project
Smt Meerabhai Village Organisation Representative- Velugu Project
Sri G Sudharshan Reddy Farmer, Postmaster
Sri Krishna Goud Farmer
Sri Ramulu Waterman
Sri Muthyalu Waterman
Smt Soni Self-Help Group Leader
Sri M Yellaiah Youth Leader
Sri R Murali Facilitator
Dr Anjal Prakash Director- Peri Urban Project
Ms Sreoshi Singh Research Fellow
Ms Vasundhara Dash Research Associate
Mr Yekambaram Research Assistant
DISCUSSION
Shamirpet Lake is part of a cascade of lakes and gets its
water from Medchal and Dhindigal Tanks. The water
channels between these two lakes have been blocked due
to various constructions around this area and the
existing channels bring in only gray and black water
carrying industrial effluents and household wastewater.
Area of this lake has gone down considerably. As per the
study by Indian Institute of Information Technology
(IIIT), 25% of the existing lake has disappeared within
the last 10 yrs (1989-2001) due to various reasons. When
levels of water in the lake are high, three villages are able
to use the water for irrigation. There has been a huge
agricultural loss due to shrinking of this lake as farmers
were earlier dependent on it for irrigation. Also, the
irrigation channels have been damaged. A solution to
filling up of this lake could be diversion of the Hakimpet
flood water to Shamirpet, as suggested by the
participants. Diversion plan has already been prepared
by the government, yet implementation remains to be
carried out.
85% of the agriculture is now dependent on bore wells and
digging up of these wells has increased investments
significantly. Groundwater table is receding as sufficient
recharge is not possible due to the increasing urban
sprawl and built-up area. There is high hardness and
contamination in this water which has also contributed to
the decrease in yield. Polluting industries in Aliabad area
were closed sometime back but still one textile industry is
still in existence.
The villagers have a lot of concerns on the levels of
pollution in the groundwater and their inability to check
them. The village water supply is from groundwater and
so far no agency has ever tested the water which the
locals think is not potable and unsuitable even for
making tea, along with leading to health problems like
pain in joints, bones etc. The Rathnalayam temple area in
Aliabad village has groundwater that is not even suitable
for washing as it is highly polluted with industrial
effluents. Complaints regarding these issues have
already been filed at the District Collectorate and
Pollution Control Board but no actions have been taken
so far.
There are no proper water management systems in the
village and people are facing lot of problems.Population
has increased to 20-30 times and hence, the demand -
leading to a large supply deficit. People are thus forced to
purchase water as Manjira drinking water is not
available to this village whereas the neighbouring
villages are getting the supply.
Rampant sand-mining has affected the sub-surface water
flow in the lake which is one of the reasons why the lake is
shrinking. Illegal constructions have taken place around
the lake and ponds. There is a lack of convergence
between the line departments. Villagers are concerned
that the old watershed has been disrupted and a solution
based effort of restoring the water levels in the lake is
required.
ŸAs the feeder channels from Dhindigal and Medchal
Lakes have collapsed, flood diversion plans from
Hakimpet to Shamirpet lake can be developed (Raghava
Reddy, Ex-Sarpanch)
ŸThe groundwater problem can be easily addressed if the
lake is developed as a reservoir under the Chevella and
Pranahitha Project (Raghava Reddy, Ex-Sarpanch)
ŸWater quality testing of groundwater as well as that
supplied by the panchayat needs to be carried out
(Krishna Reddy, Vice-Sarpanch)
ŸStrict vigilance to maintain water quality at the plants is
required (Yellaiah, youth leader)
KEY SUGGESTIONS BY STAKEHOLDERS
ŸDevelop linkages with the concerned line departments
like District Water Management Agency (DWMA),
Department of Minor irrigation, etc. (Raghupathi
Sharma, MPTC-I)
ŸIllegal sand mining across the outflow channel of
Shamirpet Lake needs to be stopped and check dams
need to be constructed for groundwater recharge.
Existing water bodies to be protected from illegal
encroachments (Raghuram Goud, MPTC-II)
ŸInitially we have to collect the technical evidences from
the concerned authority and then we have to sit together
with the Line departments (Anjal Prakash)
ACTION POINTS
Ÿ Periodical testing of the village drinking water and
sharing of results with the locals
Ÿ Mapping out different agencies working in the village
(irrigation, drinking water etc) and their existing
schemes
Ÿ Study of Shamirpet Lake has been started by
SaciWATERs together with IIIT which would be able to
find information on blocked channels and water flows
and extent of shrinkage and encroachment of the Lake
Ÿ Study of agricultural loss due to polluted water
–qualitative assessment to understand the problem and
the linkages with the industries and understanding the
extent of sand mining in the area
Sri B Suresh
NameS.No.
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List of Participants
Sarpanch
Designation
Sri Suryanarayana Assistant Engineer, Rural Water Supply
Sri D Kotaiah Village Secretary
Sri A Ravindar Carobar
Sri B Bhupal Reddy Ward Member
Sri Thalari Srinivas Water Plant Owner
Sri M Srinivas Reddy Teacher
Sri P Varaprasad Activist, Teacher
Smt Srilatha President of Village Organization- Velugu Project
Smt Anasurya SHG Leader
Sri N Babu Village Book Keeper
Smt V Swaroopa SHG Leader
Smt Sailamma Village Organisation Representative
Sri J Krishna Reddy Farmer/ Activist
Sri V Balaiah Dhobi Community Representative
Sri R Babu Farmer, Dhobi
Sri K Yadhaiah Farmer
Sri Narsimha Farmer
Mr P Umesh Facilitator
Dr Anjal Prakash Director- Peri Urban Project
Ms Sreoshi Singh
Ms Vasundhara Dash
Mr Yekambaram
Research fellow
Research Associate
Research Assistant
STAKEHOLDERS MEETING - RAVIRALA
Date: 1st May, 2011Time: 4-6 PM
Venue: Gram Panchayat Office, Ravirala Village
FINDINGS FROM THE SCOPING STUDY
Ÿ Ravirala falls within the over-exploited groundwater
zone as per the Central Groundwater Board
Ÿ Groundwater is polluted with high fluoride levels
Ÿ Dependence on neighbouring villages for drinking
water as groundwater is the only source of drinking
water for the village
Ÿ A separate pipeline is connected to Hardware Park and 5Fab City for 24x7 water supply from Nagarjunasagar
Ÿ Only lake in the village has dried up due to illegal sand
mining
Ÿ Watershed of the lake has been encroached upto 10 km
radius disturbing the water access for 4 villages in the
vicinity
Ÿ Traditional dhobi community who depended on the
lake for their livelihood, have now installed a borewell
at the lake site - Increasing water scarcity threatens
their livelihoods
DISCUSSION
This village has a major problem of equitable water
distribution. Some people get water and some do not.
There is also a political battleground in the village which
has barred any water management solutions. The
Panchayat is currently headed by a person belonging to
the SC community (due to this seat declared as reserved
seat in the last elections) and thus, the dominant caste
people have been openly challenging his leadership. The
present Sarpanch is not interested in any developmental
work because the Panchayat is going to dissolve in 2
months from he knows he won't be re-elected. There is not
much of a problem in terms of water availability in the
village as there are 30 tubewells in the villages. 22 tube
wells are run by 5 hp while 8 tube wells are run by 1 hp
pump. The wells are 200- 250 feet deep. The three phase
electricity supply is available only for 7 hours (in actual it
comes for 3-4 hours) and there is a lot of fluctuation.
There is no standing water committee in the village
which should look after this. The village can apply for
24X7 electricity connection for drinking water but due to
Panchayat politics, this has been held up. The ground
water and the remaining surface water bodies are
polluted by the industrial effluents and sewerage water
from the nearby Thukkuguda village. Across the village
only bore wells located near the tank are potable. People
have started depending on neighbouring villages and
water plants for supply of drinking water. They are
buying water at Rs 2 per litre for drinking purpose as the
tube-well water is saline and has high fluoride contents.
However, purified water-cans are not affordable by the
marginalised community. This village is connected to
Krishna water project but the pipeline has not been laid
yet and there is a delay in execution. During the meeting,
villagers got angry with the RWS representatives as to
why the pipelines haven't been laid. There are also
maintenance issues with the panchayat water supply.
All parts are not getting sufficient water for household
chores and over-exploitation of piped water supply in the
main village is consequently leading to the farthest
located houses not getting sufficient water supply. There
is also lack of good administration and rigorous follow up
to address the issues at village level.
The village has a huge lake which hasn't been filled for
many years (about 10-15 years as per the villagers).
Illegal sand mining has lead to dumping of construction
waste and small bushes across the inflow feeder channel
which has also obstructed water flow. If this tank is full, it
would solve most of the problems of water availability in
the village for both drinking and irrigation. There is
threat for the livelihoods of the dhobi community and
fisherfolk especially due to shrinking of the lake. This
lake is connected with Ibrahimpatnam Lake but the
feeder channel has been blocked. The problem of
dependence on groundwater for the agriculture and
household chores is increasing day by day. Funds from
DWMA for the purpose of watershed works are getting
delayed and there is no transparency for the released
funds through SHG federation. It has also been observed 6that villagers need to be made aware regarding WALTA
and its implementation. There is a water users
association but it is non functional.
Ÿ There is scope of getting sagar water supply as tenders
are still in the process, not only for Ravirala but also for
the entire 62 villages nearby. (Suryanarayana, AE-
RWS, Maheshwaram)
KEY SUGGESTIONS BY STAKEHOLDERS
Ÿ Since maintenance is the major problem for the
effective utilisation of the existing resources,
formation of Water & Sanitation Standing Committee
at the village level only may somewhat resolve the
problems (Umesh, Facilitator)
Ÿ If required we will extend the capacity building and
other exposure kind of inputs from SaciWATERs to
strengthen the water maintenance systems at the
Panchayat level (Anjal Prakash, Project Director)
Ÿ Awareness needs to be created among the village folk
on the protection of environment (Srinivas Reddy,
Lecturer)
Ÿ Panchayat can ensure the construction of rain water
recharge pit and plantation of trees as a rule for those
who construct new houses. Half of the problems will be
resolved if all sections of the village folk are involved
and a standing committee made (Srinivas Reddy,
Lecturer)
Ÿ Locals have to fight for the Pranahitha and Chevella
Project water (Irrigation and reservoir purpose) apart
from Sagar Project Water for drinking (Talari Srinivas,
Water Plant owner)
Ÿ Tank feeder channels renovation work can be taken up
with the convergence of NREGS, DWMA, Minor
Irrigation (Krishna Reddy, Farmer)
Ÿ 4 more Panchayat tanks are also there in the village
which have dried up and can be protected and
developed with watershed funds (Sarpanch)
Ÿ The immediate plan should be to streamline the water
management problem. This needs detailed study,
discussions and interaction with the villagers in
Ravirala
Ÿ An informal group can be promoted which can get
sanction from the panchayat for taking care of water
issues in the village
Ÿ Tree plantation activity is being planned for this
village.
ACTION POINTS
Sri Kolan Hanmantha Reddy
NameS.No.
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List of Participants
MPP - Qutubullapur
Designation
Sri Vijay Kumar AE RWS
Sri Madasu Venkatesham Sarpanch
Sri Sudhakar Village Secretary
Sri Mallareddy Extension Officer, Rural Devlopment
Sri M Krishna Director WUA-Maheshwaram Colony
Sri Raghupathi Reddy Bill collector
Sri Narsi Reddy Village Revenue Officer- Mallampet
Sri U Sailu Farmer
Sri Vadla Veeresham Farmer
Sri Gandigudem Vijaya Ward Member
Smt U Rajani Community Volunteer – Velugu Project
Sri Ramu Water Plant Owner
Smt Gandla Eeshwaramma Ward Member
Sri Potnagari Anjaiah Ward Member
STAKEHOLDERS MEETING - MALLAMPET
Date: 2nd May, 2011Time: 12-2 PM
Venue: Mandal Office, Qutubhullapur
FINDINGS FROM THE SCOPING STUDY
Ÿ Mallampet falls within the Qutubullahpur Mandal
which has been considered as a safe groundwater zone
by the Central Groundwater Board Report for 2006,
but after speaking to villagers during the initial phase
of the study, we realised that the waters were far from
being safe, be it for drinking or for agriculture
Ÿ Groundwater has been polluted over the last several
years by surrounding industries which has completely
polluted 2 lakes in the vicinity that were earlier used
for drinking purposes. Most people have given up on
agriculture and have been forced to sell their lands
because of the high pollution levels in the water.
Mallampet is the most sought after village with
regard to water supplies to the city and the industries
around it
Ÿ The village depends on the Khatua Lake for drinking
water and irrigation. This tank is also being
encroached now by the ring road resulting in
shrinking of 25 to 30% of the tank (We will be carrying
out a GIS study to enable us to understand the level of
encroachment). Also the water of Khatua cheruvu is
polluted during monsoons when the waste from the
entire village drains into the tank.
Ÿ During summers, villagers bring water in large tanks
from the surrounding villages which receive Majira
water and sell it in the village locally.
Ÿ Almost 12 tanker entrepreneurs are operating in the
village and random extraction of water from specific
farmlands is ongoing. Here water is being sold by the
farmer from his land by setting up a personal bore and
running his pump throughout the day, since
electricity is free
Ÿ The rapid pace of urbanisation is very evident in the
village and its surrounding areas, where gated
communities are also coming up and with competing
uses of water, the future of these vulnerable
communities are at stake
DISCUSSION
There are three lakes in this village. Two of those lakes
are being polluted through industrial effluents while one
lake is being polluted through local sources like diversion
of village wastewater into the lake. Almost 20% of the
Khatua Lake has been encroached upon due to the
construction of by the Outer ring road. The rain water
accumulated in existing tanks is exhausting within a
short time due to rampant abstraction by the tankers.
There are local fishermen who have traditionally used
Khatwa Lake and others complain that they are not
allowing other groups share this water. There is a
rampant groundwater extraction in this village for
commercial and industrial use. Livelihoods of the
fisherfolk and farmers are especially threatened.
Internal politics and non cooperation for the protection of
common property resources at the village level can be
seen.
The groundwater has high TDS (600-700). The village
has its own filtration plant (RO) which has been
sponsored by the Panchayat. The cost of treated water is
Rs 2 per 20 litres and villagers are happy over the low
cost. However, the marginalised and isolated families
can't afford water even at this rate. Villagers need
Manjira water connection as it has come till the adjacent
village, Bachupally but hasn't come to this village yet.
Ÿ Extent of pollution by the pharmaceutical industries
dumping their waste in Khatua Lake needs to be
found out (Sarpanch)
Ÿ Storing rainwater in one of the tanks and ensuring
that there are no leakages through previously
installed sluice gates by employing a care taker for
this (Anjaiah, Ward Member)
Ÿ Maintenance fund can also be mobilised from the
direct beneficiaries of the tank for employing a
caretaker (Prof. Ramachandraiah, facilitator)
Ÿ In accordance with WALTA, as a first step for the
protection of Khatua Lake from getting polluted, a
joint complaint (by Barompet & Mallampet villages
that are affected) can be lodged with the Pollution
Control Board with a copy marked to MRO, MPDO,
District Collector, SaciWATERs, etc. against the
particular industries (Prof. Ramachandraiah,
facilitator)
KEY SUGGESTIONS BY STAKEHOLDERS
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Smt Vavilala Amboja Ward Member
Smt Susheela SHG Leader
Smt Laxmi SHG Leader
Prof. Ramachandraiah Facilitator
Dr Anjal Prakash Director- Peri Urban Project
Ms Sreoshi Singh
Ms Vasundhara Dash
Mr Yekambaram
Research fellow
Research Associate
Research Assistant
ACTION POINTS
Ÿ Khatwa Lake needs protection from pharmaceutical
industries discharging polluted water in the lake
Ÿ Low cost, small-scale sewage treatment plant can be
established at Chenangi Lake for treatment of
household water
Ÿ Understanding the fishermen community and their
relations with the larger community with respect to use
of water bodies
Ÿ Complaining to the pollution control board with the
photos of effluent discharge as well as outer ring road
encroaching the lake
Ÿ Mandal Revenue Officer should be contacted
regarding stopping the water tanker operations.
Influential leaders are involved in this process and the
village folk need to sit together and discuss the
possibilities for stopping this business (Prof.
Ramachandraiah, facilitator)
Ÿ One sewage treatment plant can be started in the
Chennangi Lake to prevent it from being further
polluted. (Anjal Prakash, Project Director)
Ÿ Manjira water is required to ensure drinking water for
all sections of the village (Amboja, Ward member)
Ÿ A similar meeting in the next two months (June/July)
at the Grama Sabha can be held to identify the major
issues and to find out ways of addressing them (Anjal
Prakash, Project Director)
Reported byVasundhara Dash
With inputs from,Dr. Anjal PrakashMr. Chengala YekambaramMs. Sreoshi Singh
1Manjira River is a tributary of the Godavari River and this reservoir is a sustained drinking water source for Hyderabad and Secunderabad
2MPDO - Mandal Parishad Development Officer
3MPTC - Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency. One MPTC is appointed for every 5000 population in the village
4The Velugu Project has been introduced by Andhra Pradesh Rural Development Agency for the development of the poor so as to encourage their
inherited skills and strengthen their livelihoods by all means
5To match the hardware needs of the IT Companies in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation has developed the
Hardware Park and Fab City is being promoted as a world-class hub for advanced semiconductor and electronics manufacturing industries
6Andhra Pradesh Water, Land And Trees Act, 2002