Restoring the lost links of Hyderabad lakes in case of North west musi basin Khajagunda lake watershed

Abstract

Urban water bodies are those that have survived historical development around which settlements gradually took place. These water bodies were essential in making the cities live able. Today, over half of the world’s population lives in urban areas and this is expected to increase in the future with over 60% of population living in cities by 2050. With growth of population there is an increasing pressure on the urban water bodies. Hyderabad is the one of the fastest growing cities in Telangana, India. The city was once known as City of Lakes and gardens. At present it has more than 500 lakes in the city .The city is located on the Deccan Plateau with undulating rocky terrain, which has enabled the construction of many lakes for the purpose of storing rain water from the ancient times. Acting as reservoirs, lakes provided drinking water source to millions of people and also helped in preventing the flooding during monsoon. As the city is being expanded rapidly, lakes were subjected to re – development in the urban context. Khajaguda Lake which is located in the western zone, part of North West Musi basin was selected for the detailed study. Western zone has experienced a major drastic change in just last 10 years. Until the mid-nineties, this area was just covered with age old unique heritage rock formations, forests and small village’s settlements. As the IT sector came in late 19th century, rapid urbanization has started along the lakes which led to environmental and social issues. Gradually these lakes started to shrink and led to loss of interconnections between the water bodies. This is the primary reason that led to cause of floods in this area. The study aims to improve the natural drainage system in watershed area and design a water resilient landscape by restoring the lost connectivity of urban lakes and along with improvising the quality life of the local community.