Khammam: Stinking nala to turn public hotspot

Once a stinking, nala, the areas around it are set to be transformed with parks, gyms, and children's playground

Khammam: From being an open ‘nala’ with garbage floating in it, the Gollapadu channel is now being turned into a pleasant area dotted with parks, open gyms, and children’s playgrounds.

With the State government ensuring sufficient funds and speedy execution of works Gollapadu channel and its surroundings assumed a spic and span look adding beauty to Khammam city. An amount of Rs 100 crore is being spent on modernising the age-old ‘nala’.

---

Gollapadu channel was dug nearly four centuries ago and until a few decades ago it served as an irrigation source for agriculture fields in Sundaraiah Nagar, Dhamsalapuram and others once the outskirts. With rapid urbanisation, the nala was encroached upon and it turned into dirty drainage.

Transport Minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar apprised Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao about the pathetic condition of the channel and requested funds to modernise it and surrounding areas. During one of his visits to Khammam, the Chief Minister sanctioned funds for the purpose, and plans had been drawn up to modernise the ‘nala’ and develop areas around it in 10 municipal divisions.

IT Minister K T Rama Rao laid the foundation stone for the modernisation works in November 2016. Chief Minister’s Special Assurances Funds and other funds have been used for the modernisation works that were nearing completion, thanks to continuous monitoring of works by Ajay Kumar.

As part of the Gollapadu channel modernisation the ‘nala’ is now converted into 11 kilometres underground sewerage pipeline-cum-storm water drain and the land so recovered is being developed as public park, Ajay Kumar said.

A total of five public parks — with fencing, lighting, open gyms and walking tracks — are being developed and recently a park named after green crusader Vanajeevi Ramaiah was inaugurated in the 30th division of Khammam Municipal Corporation. “For decades the past governments neglected the people’s demands to develop Gollapadu channel. The local people used to face problems with mosquitoes and an unhygienic environment because of the stinking open drainage and in monsoon, the drainage water used to inundate houses near the channel. Thanks to the Chief Minister, the area is now a beautiful spot in the city,” Ajay Kumar said.

For treating sewage water a 40 MLD capacity Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) is being constructed involving an expenditure of Rs 30 crore. The residents, who encroached the ‘nala’ have been evacuated and rehabilitated at Velugumatla, the Minister said.

The Chief Minister during a recent review meeting in Hyderabad on Nizamabad development told the officials and elected representatives of that district to visit Khammam to study the way in which the city is being developed.