Rs 16,634 Crore For Musi Beautification: KTR

Municipal Administration & Urban Development Minister K T Rama Rao today said that the government would take steps for the beautification of the Musi river at an estimated cost of Rs 16,634 crore.

He also said that the government was taking up the SRDP second phase works at a cost of Rs. 3,115 crore in all the zones of the GHMC.

Replying to questions raised by the members in the Assembly on the issue of the works taken up for the development of the Musi and its catchment areas, the minister said that the state government was committed to the beautification of the river.

He said that Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had held meetings with well-known architect Hafeez Contractor on the issue between 2014 and 2015, and that the government had made plans to find a permanent solution to the river problem.

The minister said the capital had 54 major nalas, and that 94% of the sewage was being released into the Musi river, making it a cess pool. However, the government had made plans for comprehensive development of the river and reduce its pollution, and had set up the Musi River Front Development Corporation for the development of the river.

It had also taken up the construction of walkways at Nagole, Chadarghat and the Muslim Jung bridge in the city, put up floating trash barriers at some places in the river to remove hyacinth and other waste, and taken up works like the usage of hydraulic excavators and fogging to reduce the mosquito problem.

Explaining the initiatives planned for Musi's rejuvenation and development, KTR said that Rs 9,000 crore was proposed for the East to West elevated corridor along the river. The state government was also taking up Godavari-linking from Kondapochamma to Gandipet at a cost of Rs. 1,250 crore. These apart, 31 STPs were being proposed at decentralized locations at a cost of Rs. 3,866 crore, and these works would be completed by December, he said.

The minister also said that 14 bridges across rivers Esa and Musi would be constructed at a cost of Rs. 545 crore, and that three check dams would be constructed at a cost of nearly Rs. 300 crore.