Call to mark lakes for immersion
Telangana has 64,055 water bodies, according to the Union Jal Shakti Ministry’s first Census of Water Bodies, while the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority’s latest available figure, from 2024, puts the number of lakes in its region at about 3,400. Against this network, 103 water bodies across GHMC , Cyberabad Municipal Corporation (CMC) and Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation (MMC) have been identified for idol immersion this year. “The lake earlier saw more than 100 idol immersions, which included around 40-50 larger idols before community intervention brought the number down to almost zero.
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The lake in which the six students drowned was neither designated for immersion nor barred for it., according to officials. We will tighten enforcement once we receive the list,” Medchal traffic DCP S Sheshadrini Reddy told TOI. Environmentalist Madhulika Choudhary said authorities need to clearly communicate which water bodies can and cannot be used. it is important to understand that the responsibility cannot end with identifying a few immersion points,” she said While we understand that the process has become much better this year. She said several lakes, including Gandipet and Mushkin Cheruvu, have historically been used by local communities. “If authorities want devotees to move away from such places, they need to communicate this early and provide accessible alternatives,” she said. When there are no barricades, swimmers and other safety arrangements, entering such a water body during immersion becomes particularly dangerous,” Choudhary said. Another environmentalist, Kalpana Ramesh said Karikunta Lake illustrates the need to monitor water bodies that were once routinely used for immersion. Interventions like CCTV cameras near the lake, banners, signages, and residents and morning walkers personally monitoring and stopping people from immersions helped greatly. ” GHMC superintendent engineer Suresh Babu said there was no general list of prohibited water bodies outside the designated immersion points. The remaining water bodies are not officially designated for immersion, while reservoirs such as Gandipet and Himayat Sagar are meant exclusively for drinking water,” he said. Saifabad ACP R Sanjay Kumar said policemen counselled some of the devotees and stopped the activity. Traffic police said additional forces were being deployed to enforce the ban.
Hyderabad: The drowning of six students during Ganesh idol immersion at Pedda Kanjara in Sangareddy has renewed focus on water bodies neither marked for immersion nor explicitly prohibited from being used for the purpose. These local lakes and ponds have traditionally been used by devotees but often lack basic safety arrangements such as cranes, barricades and expert swimmers. The scale of the challenge is considerable. “We were not given a list of water bodies prohibited for immersion by the municipal authorities. “If a lake is neither designated nor clearly prohibited for immersion, people will naturally continue to use it, especially when they have traditionally used it for years. The physical condition of some water bodies can add to the danger. “Several lakes are not adequately maintained or desilted. Silt accumulation changes the lake bed and makes it difficult for people to assess the actual depth of the water. “The sites were selected based on factors such as water availability and traffic, with the aim of channeling idol immersions to those locations. Immersions on at Hussain Sagar Meanwhile, a day after Hyderabad police put up posters banning immersion of Plaster of Paris (PoP) Ganesh idols at Tank Bund, a video circulating on social media showed people climbing over fences to immerse idols in Hussain Sagar. This comes despite a Telangana high court order banning immersion in the lake. Small immersion ponds have been arranged on Necklace Road. Download the TOI App.