In Hyderabad, the Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency, known as HYDRAA, has made big strides in reclaiming public spaces over the past year. The agency recovered 923 acres of government land, lakes, parks, and roads—worth a whopping Rs. 50,000 crore—helping protect the city’s assets and fight urban encroachments.
HYDRAA Commissioner A.V. Ranganath shared these updates during a press conference on Monday. Since the agency launched on July 19 last year, teams carried out 96 operations to clear 581 illegal encroachments. The reclaimed areas break down like this: 424 acres of government land, 233 acres of lakes, 218 acres of roads, 15 acres of drainage channels (nalas), and 25 acres of parks.
Ranganath highlighted how HYDRAA has tackled around 5,000 public complaints about encroachments on lakes, parks, roads, nalas, government land, and illegal layouts. The agency resolved about 75% of these, with a strong focus on clearing settlements and fixing waterlogging problems that plague Hyderabad.
The Telangana government created HYDRAA specifically to prevent disasters and safeguard public assets in the Telangana Core Urban Region (TCUR). This covers 2,055 square kilometers, including 150 wards in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), seven other corporations, and 20 municipalities.
On the lake front, HYDRAA invested Rs. 58.40 crore to restore and rejuvenate six key lakes. This work boosted their total area from 105 acres to 180 acres, reclaiming an extra 75 acres from encroachers. One highlight is Bathukamma Lake in Amberpet, set to reopen on September 26 with Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy leading the event.
Looking ahead, the agency is installing 1,000 CCTV cameras across 180 lakes in the GHMC area at a cost of Rs. 8.60 crore to boost monitoring and security. HYDRAA has also identified 14 more lakes for rejuvenation and submitted proposals to the government.
Future plans include using drones to map full tank levels (FTL) for lakes, track yearly changes, and set up geo-fencing around tanks, nalas, and other assets. They’ll also roll out real-time dashboards and alerts to improve coordination between departments.
To handle emergencies, HYDRAA currently has 51 Disaster Response Force (DRF) teams with 825 personnel ready to respond. Ranganath said the agency aims to expand to 72 teams this year, strengthening Hyderabad’s defenses against floods and other urban challenges.
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