The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Civilians speak their mind

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 06, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Civilians speak their mind

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, DEC. 5. "We get water once in five days...No water supply for the last six months...Roads are bad...Streetlights don't function...Where is the planning cell?...For everything we have to run to the Executive Officer...traffic jams everyday...no sewerage lines..."

It is rare for a civilian in Secunderabad Cantonment to get an opportunity to speak about infrastructural problems in the area and when the chance came, complaints poured out at the interactive meeting called by the Congress MP, S. Satyanarayana, at the Picket Gardens, on Sunday.

Though the programme was for eliciting opinion on transferring water supply operations to the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board and whether the SCB could be converted into a special municipality or merged with the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad, people brought to light other issues plaguing them. Here's a sample:

"There is no regulated water supply. God knows for how many years we have been suffering but certainly we do not want the SCB to become like municipalities adjacent to us," said Lakshmi Balaji, President, Surya Enclave, Trimulgherry.

SCB passive

"The SCB is passive and no action was taken to improve roads or regulate increased traffic. The bridge near Manovikasnagar is taking ages to get completed and there is urgent need to widen Bowenpally Bridge," said Narayanaswamy, President, SMR Enclave, Hashmathpet.

Naveen Shah of Paigah Colony pointed to the lack of a planning department in the SCB and adequate staff.

Key posts vacant

Key posts were kept vacant and since there was no proper delegation of powers, people are left to seek out the EO or Additional EO even for simple issues. M. Yella Reddy of Teachers Colony and Mohan Kumar of Airlines Housing Colony, felt not having an elected body was affecting common people. The bridge near Asish Gardens was a traffic bottleneck and needs widening.

R. Narayana of Sanjeevaiahnagar rued the lack of proper grievance redressal system in the SCB and referred to a complaint being unattended for nearly three months.

The Additional Executive Officer, N. Srinivasa Reddy, the former Vice-Chairman V. Pratap and all the ex-corporators were present.

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