Follow TNM's WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.
Water conservationist Rajender Singh on Tuesday, December 9, urged the Telangana government to involve residents in the Musi river project. Emphasising the need for community involvement, he said the river rejuvenation project would succeed only through active public participation. Rajender’s remarks came on the second day of the Telangana Rising Global Summit, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy’s flagship event held ahead of the release of the vision document Telangana Rising 2047.
Rajender, popularly known as the “waterman of India,” appeared to address concerns raised by civic activists who fear that residents living along the river may be displaced as part of the project. A few weeks ago, activists under the banner of Musi Jan Andolan sought transparency and questioned the absence of a Detailed Project Report (DPR).
Rajender was part of a panel titled ‘Musi Rejuvenation and Blue-Green Infrastructure in Hyderabad’, which also included Telangana IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu and MRDCL Managing Director EV Narasimha Reddy, both of whom promoted the Musi Riverfront Project.
Minister Sridhar Babu said the state government’s Musi initiative aligns with its focus on restoring blue-green spaces. He highlighted the need to expand the city’s green network, link the Musi with Godavari river water, and ensure flood mitigation.
“The goal is to ensure that every blue-green space is restored, mobility is improved and also instill confidence in the real estate and push Telangana as a growth driver,” he said.
Lead Environmental Specialist at the World Bank, Tapas Paul, described the project as an “ambitious plan” but added that it “wasn’t ambitious enough.”
“It is important to focus on the right of the river on the land and return 80–90 square kilometers back to the river,” he said.
Hydrology specialist Arjun Shashidharan noted that the river’s water-carrying capacity has significantly reduced, and when combined with torrential rain and narrow drains, it leads to flooding.
“As things stand, we don’t need high rainfall. 50–100 mm of rain suffice for Hyderabad to get flooded,” he said.
He recommended that, given the constraints on river space, the MRDCL and the state government adopt a probabilistic approach to planning the Musi project to prevent future flooding.
