Did you know that Hyderabad is resistant to earthquakes, cyclones, and many other natural disasters due to its geographical advantage?
Having said that, we realize that the last few days have been chaotic as heavy rains have completely flooded our city. The floodgates of the Himayat Sagar were lifted and the Musi river overflowed, flooding several localities and causeway bridges.
Urban flooding is not a new phenomenon in Hyderabad. We have experienced it earlier in 2000, 2008, 2016, and 2017 and every time the situation got equally chaotic. Our Hyderabad drainage system is designed to cater to 12 mm/hour rainfall intensity and it is the blockage of these drains that makes the situation worse. The reason we face these flood situations time and again is because of the congestion we’ve caused within the city.
For decades, lakes and water bodies have served as natural flood management mechanisms in the city, but unfortunately today even nature is being tested under the pressure of urbanization. What is saddening is the fact that, in the midst of this disaster, we saw a number of people venting on public platforms against the Government and GMHC, that they are not doing much to contain the havoc. Whilst, we are the ones who throw away the trash irresponsibly and cause blockage in the drains. This is not a flood caused by a cyclone but is a man-made disaster.
The backlash against the government seems unfair to us and made us reflect on the current situation. We followed it up with a Social Media Poll and are extremely glad to see the responses.
Yes! It is high time we realized that we are all equally responsible for this.
It is our collective effort that is required to find solutions and the problem that we are expecting the government to solve is ‘us’.
How to keep your city safe, clean, and hygienic!
Segregate Dry and Wet Waste
The government has provided 2 bins to each and every home in Hyderabad to distinguish the dry and wet waste before disposing.
Ask yourself if you’re actually doing it? If not make sure to implement it!
Build Rain-water Harvesting Pits
The government has given guidelines and even subsidies to construct rain-water harvesting pits in every building.
In case your residence does not have one, Make sure to get it built!
Re-Use and Re-cycle
Reuse and recycle are the two magical steps to develop a sustainable future. If there is anything which you don’t require, discover other ways of using it, and if not then look for someone who might need it.
If it is wrecked, then before disposing of it, try to repair it.
Trash Responsibility
Prevent littering and dispose of garbage appropriately. Do not be lazy to reach out to a dust-bin. Make it a habit to Trash Responsibly at all times!
Plant More Trees
Making the city green starts with planting a tree. A single tree can produce nearly 260 pounds of oxygen in a year and an acre of trees removes up to 2.6 tons of carbon dioxide each year.
Not everyone can construct a building, but surely every single one of us can plant sampling and take care of it.
We have been taught all of this right from our childhood but, alas we take them for granted and do not play our role in society. We can no longer take these things for granted since Hyderabad is our Responsibility!
We Hyderabadis have to be extremely grateful for having been blessed with a city that is resistant to many natural disasters like earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones, and more. It is our responsibility to save the city and keep it clean, green, and hygienic at all times.
