Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) has launched a major crackdown on an alleged illegal water extraction and supply racket around Sunnam Cheruvu, removing 15 borewells drilled inside residential houses and exposing an extensive network of underground pipelines used to pump and transport water for commercial sale.
The operation, conducted jointly with officials from the revenue department, Cyberabad Municipal Corporation and the water board, uncovered borewells concealed in bedrooms, kitchens and even beneath beds, with powerful motors installed to extract groundwater. Officials also found underground pipelines running for hundreds of metres, connecting borewells to water storage tanks and tanker-filling points. Tests conducted by the Telangana pollution control board reportedly detected elevated levels of heavy metals, including cadmium, lead and nickel. The agency warned that consumption of contaminated water could pose serious health risks. HYDRAA alleged that water extracted from these borewells was being supplied commercially despite concerns over its quality, raising questions about the safety of water consumed by residents, hotel guests and hostel occupants.
Some residents said borewells that once yielded water at depths of around 60 feet now required drilling to nearly 600 feet.
Residents complained that large-scale extraction was worsening local water scarcity and depleting groundwater reserves, according to HYDRAA. Several existing borewells had also dried up, while their motors had burnt out. Residents alleged that while households were struggling to secure water for their daily needs, operators continued to extract and sell groundwater through tanker networks.