Politics is heating up over Musi pollution and its harmful effects on villages

Nalgonda: Political parties are embroiled in a dispute over the cleaning of the polluted Musi river in Nalgonda district, affecting villages along its banks. The conflict arose after the state government sanctioned the demolition of encroachments along the river, drawing attention to pollution by about 70 industries over the past two decades.

Bhongir Chamala Member of Parliament Kiran Kumar Reddy, who went on a padayatra to highlight the issue, held a meeting in Hyderabad with villagers protesting the opposition parties’ objections.

Pollution levels are particularly high near Motkur, although they decrease somewhat downstream, especially where the Bikkera stream joins the river at Vardhamankota in Suryapet district.

Farmers in these areas rely on boreholes drilled into the Musi River for irrigation water, ensuring the survival of their crops even during droughts.

Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy said that the water of the Musi river was polluted not only by Hyderabad’s drainage system but also by chemical waste from around 70 industries. He noted that filtering these chemical wastes through sewage treatment plants is impractical.

Nallabelli Yadagiri, a farmer from Gattusingaram, a village near the river, expressed concern over the deteriorating water quality and the river has turned gray over the past decade. Despite this, water is used for irrigation. “We also consume rice that we mill from our own rice, but in the last 10 years the water in Musa has turned light black due to pollution,” he explained.

Siga Ramachandru, a resident of Jajireddigudem, another village near Musi, recalled that a decade ago, villagers drank water from an open well in the Musi river. Now, thanks to Mission Bhagiratha, they are getting purified drinking water. He emphasized that the state should stop emissions of industrial chemical waste in the first place.

In addition, during low water levels, the river emits unpleasant odors, and a suspicious white layer of chemical residues appears on the riverbed.