MOTHER NATURE June 2017 | Page 12

12
2017

MUSI MESSY

It joins the Krishna River at Vadapally in Nalgonda district after covering a distance of about 240 km . Due to indiscriminate urbanization and lack of planning , the river has become a receptacle of untreated domestic and industrial waste dumping out of Hyderabad . It is estimated that nearly 350 MLD ( million litres a day ) of polluted water and sewage originating from Hyderabad and Secunderabad flow into the river . Efforts to clean it have failed . The river water downstream of the cities remains highly polluted , considered a major disaster in Hyderabad . There have been many attempts made to clean the river but in vain . The river is most polluted in the city due to the addition of untreated industrial wastes . The water gets cleaner as the river moves away from the city and nearly 40km away from the city the water is fit for irrigation . This is due to the different treatment processes established . This proves that the water is not un-treatable but needs serious action towards it . The recent events in Karnataka , where water from domestic places was added into a lake , frothed and caught fire and burnt for nearly 3 days , should act as an eye opener for us and urge us to act immediately . Imagine a river full of untreated industrial wastes , what would be the condition of it if something like that occurs , can we stop it , can we stand in front of nature , when nature retaliates ? Prevention is better than cure .
Of course , the calm river flowing through Hyderabad wasn ' t all about nature ' s bounty and love stories , but it was the reason of misery everytime it was in a spate . As per records there were over 112 floods in Hyderabad since 1572 AD and the worst according to history , over 15,000 people were killed and an equal number rendered homeless after the Musi floods of 1908 . To cope with the enormity of devastation the then ruler , sixth Nizam Mir Hahboob Ali Khan , opened the gates of his palace On the positive side , the floods was a lesson for the rulers and that was where the modern era of development took roots . The rulers drew a roadmap and elaborate plans were made for development of Hyderbad , making it a planned city , with sufficient precautionary measures to tackle natural disasters . That is quite evident in the way the city progressing today . Clearly , not just its name , but Hyderabad has a special relevance attached to river Musi , which in all probability will get a new life if the Telangana government successfully implements the beautification project .