The impact of Musi floods along the catchment areas of Hyderabad-A study

Abstract

Abstract Urban floods threaten the functioning of many states across the country. Mumbai, the economic capital of India, gets affected in most of the monsoon seasons due to heavy rains. Likewise, the state of Kerala too witnessed heavy floods in the recent years. In this background, the current research paper is an attempt based on secondary data to focus on the impact of urban floods in the stretch of river Musi in Hyderabad. The Telangana region experienced heavy rains in October 2020 due to which a flash flood occurred in Hyderabad. This happened after 100 years while the river basin had settlements coming up in low laying or catchment areas. The people who were residing along the coastlines of the slums also got affected during the floods. Historically, river musi was a source of drinking water in that region. However, the scenario got completely changed due to overpopulation, uncontrolled migration and housing affordability in this region which led to devastation of the river basin. According to the (CSE)’s 71-city study, Hyderabad city discharges about 700-800 million litres per day of untreated sewerage water directly into Musi river. So, the drinking water for the entire city is brought from different places. The current research paper is an attempt to focus on the regional issues and determine the social cost and the livelihood along the Musi River stretch in Hyderabad region in a comprehensive manner. Pollution brings an unprecedented fall in agricultural yield and increases the input costs for agriculture like handlooms. It also affects the allied services like dairy, poultry, livestock, fishing, washing clothes, health hazard, unemployment etc. In order to avoid the urban floods in the future, the planning strategies need to be implemented to achieve sustainable development along the stretch of Musi through people’s participation and government intervention.