Hyderabad, March 3 Eminent environmental activist Medha Patkar’s visit to a house in an area near the Musi River in Hyderabad sent the police into a tizzy on Monday.
Scores of police personnel reached a house in Shankar Nagar, Old Malakpet area following information about her presence.
Her visit set off speculations that she may visit the Musi Riverfront Development Project and meet people likely to be affected by the project.
Alert police officers including women rushed to the house. Though the activist told police officers that she was only visiting a friend, they advised her to leave the area.
The police later escorted her out of the area close to the Musi River bank.
Medha Patkar, who is famous for Narmada Bachao Andolan, was in the city to speak at the all-India convention of the National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM).
It was in Shankar Nagar that the authorities began the demolition of houses in October last year for the Musi River project. About 163 houses were demolished by the municipal authorities.
The Telangana government has prepared plans for development along the 55 km stretch of the river. Thousands of residents in the areas along the banks of the river fear evictions.
The opposition parties have claimed that the project may result in the displacement of more than a lakh people. They also questioned the government’s reported plans to spend Rs 1.5 lakh crore on the project.
Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, who envisions development along the Musi River on the lines of the Thames River in London, defended the project saying it is aimed at rejuvenating the river
The Chief Minister said that Musi, which was once supplying drinking water, had now turned into a drain spewing poison.
He said more than 1,600 houses were identified in the Musi bed and the government has sanctioned houses for people shifted from the river and also given them money. He also announced that 10,000 families in the buffer zone of Musli will also be rehabilitated.
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