Scientific planning is must for Musi river rejuvenation without displacement, says Musi Jan Andolan

Musi Jan Andolan has called for a scientific and ecological approach to the Musi rejuvenation project, questioning the government’s plans for land acquisition and displacement. The group said proper river basin planning is needed before undertaking large-scale riverfront development

Hyderabad: Musi Jan Andolan (MJA), a civilian body fighting against the Musi Riverfront Development project, called for a scientific approach to Musi rejuvenation.

Responding to the PowerPoint presentation of the Musi River Development Corporation Limited (MRDCL) in the presence of the Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday, the MJA said the Musi rejuvenation should be carried out through ecologically sound river basin planning that does not require mass displacement.

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In a statement, the MJA said the MRDCL displayed grand visuals of London, Paris, Singapore and Korea, and pointed out that these cities spent decades cleaning their rivers before adding public amenities. Without this, the Musi will remain polluted no matter what is built on the banks.

Referring to the Chief Minister’s remark that there ‘are hardly 10,000 families’ on the entire Musi River banks, the MJA said the information submitted by MRDCL to the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) in its application for environmental clearance admitted that for Phase 1 alone, 12,204 families were marked to be displaced.

MJA said the entire PowerPoint presentation was premised on the position that land acquisition and displacement on this scale were inevitable. It also said that the presentation raised questions about the design, direction of the overall Musi project and the government’s commercial priorities, and contained several gaps, lacking adequate facts and scientific approach.

MJA also stated that the organisation was committed to constructive and meaningful dialogue, as well as peaceful democratic struggle in the interest of the Musi River and its people, both upstream and downstream.