HYDRAA bars Ganesh immersion in newly rejuvenated Hyderabad lakes

HYDRAA has opposed Ganesh idol immersions in several newly rejuvenated lakes across Hyderabad, citing pollution concerns and restoration costs. The Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi, however, has resisted the restrictions, insisting on traditional immersions and questioning claims of permanent damage.

Hyderabad: The annual Ganesh immersion festivities organised by Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi have run into a major administrative standoff with the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency’s (HYDRAA) refusal to allow the immersion rituals in the newly rejuvenated lakes.

The restrictions came to light during a Ganesh immersion preparedness meeting, where HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath urged local Ganesh Utsav Committees to steer clear of Kapra Lake.

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Ranganath directed organisers to use alternative arrangements, such as artificial ponds constructed by civic bodies, warning that decades of sewage had turned Kapra Lake into a highly polluted cesspool.

Although the Telangana government has spent crores of rupees restoring the waterbody, Commissioner Ranganath noted that permitting mass idol immersions would immediately re-pollute the ecosystem and render the restoration expenditure wasteful.

The friction intensified further in an immersion arrangements review meeting led by Hyderabad in-charge Minister Ponnam Prabhakar.

The HYDRAA policy directly impacts several newly rejuvenated water bodies across Greater Hyderabad, including Bathukammakunta (Amberpet), Bum-Rukn-ud-Daula (Shivrampally), Nalla Cheruvu (Kukatpally), Sunnam Cheruvu (Madhapur), Thammidi Kunta (Madhapur), and Pedda Cheruvu (Uppal).

For over six decades, locals and Ganesh Utsav Committees have used these lakes for traditional immersion amid immense gaiety and without regulatory hurdles. The sudden restrictions have also drawn sharp pushback from Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) and festival organisers.

HYDRAA sources defended the move, stating that the agency intends to transform these restored water bodies into family-friendly tourist attractions featuring children’s amenities and beautification projects funded by public money. Allowing chemical paints, Plaster of Paris, and debris from Ganesh idols to enter the cleaned basins would undermine these investments, according to agency officials.

However, the Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi is refusing to back down. Founder-member Karodimal asserted that the organisation is keen to use the HYDRAA-revived lakes for traditional annual immersions, maintaining that the Samithi has managed the event for decades without hurdles and arguing that there is no evidence proving traditional immersions permanently damage the lakes.