Watering Hyderabad’s dried-up dreams Premium

A.V. Ranganath, Commissioner of HYDRAA, Hyderabad's lake protector, faces media frenzy and political backlash over demolition drives.

A.V. Ranganath, Commissioner of the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA), is currently the centre of media attention. His seventh-floor office at Buddha Bhavan, with a view of the Hussainsagar lake, buzzes with activity. Petitions pour in and visitors stream in, from everyday citizens to whistleblowers, politicians, and activists, all vying for an audience with him.

Media contingents add to the frenzy, with cameras scrambling for even the shortest soundbite. National media reporters clamour for a few minutes of his time as logos flash, interviews go live, and pieces-to-camera are given right from his chamber.

Ranganath is not shy of word. The Inspector General-rank officer from Telangana Police engages with every media outlet — even YouTube channels — answering all questions with ease and bantering with journalists. Exuding authority and confidence, he has earned the reputation as Hyderabad’s saviour, just a month after assuming charge as Commissioner of the newly-constituted agency.

“We were getting about 50 to 60 complaints daily till a few days ago; now we are getting about 100,” Ranganath says, responding to a question.

Most complaints revolve around encroachment of lakes and water bodies across the city — precisely the raison d’être of HYDRAA. Demolition of N-Convention, a high-end venue for weddings and events on the western part of the city, owned by actor Akkineni Nagarjuna, catapulted Ranganath to the centre stage of heroic adulation and media attention towards August-end.

Contours of the Thammidi Kunta lake, superimposed on the satellite map by the Irrigation department, clearly show the convention centre occupying a significant portion of the lake’s buffer and the bed.

The venue was in the eye of the storm in 2014 as well, when the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority issued a preliminary notification declaring its Full Tank Level (FTL).