Illegal building constructed on lake blown up on city outskirts

Hyderabad: The authorities demolished a four-storeyed building constructed in a lake with a controlled explosion on Thursday. The structure had been erected directly within Malkapur Peddacheruvu lake, prompting immediate action from authorities.

The multi-storeyed building was constructed illegally in FTL of Malkapur Peddacheruvu in Kondapur mandal of Sangareddy district, about 60 km from Hyderabad. Acting on a complaint by the villagers, revenue and other department officials demolished the structure using explosives.

According to the officials, a resident from Secunderabad had constructed the building 12 years ago. He even constructed steps to enter into the building from the banks of the lake. The owner had also built a staircase leading into the structure from a distance, enabling access without stepping into the lake waters and visits the premises along with his family during the weekends.

Tahsildar Anita said that the lake has a Full Tank Level (FTL) area of 3.1 acres. The building spread over 250 square yards was constructed in FTL. The owner was issued a notice before carrying out the demolition.

She said “Since no vehicle could reach the building in the lake for demolition, it was blown up with explosives. The police had made tight security arrangements for the demolition,” she added.

This is the first time that the officials have used explosives to demolish a structure against illegal structures to reclaim the encroached lands.

However, during the demolition, debris from the blast flew in multiple directions, resulting in injuries to two individuals present at the site. The injured were immediately taken to a local government hospital for treatment.