Fishermen worst affected by lake encroachments

Hyderabad: The Telangana State Fisheries Co-operative Societies Federation Ltd (TSFCSFL) chairman Mettu Sai Kumar said here on Monday that the livelihood of fishermen was completely affected owing to lake encroachments.

He said fishermen who harvest fish from water bodies were pushed to the brink, as levels fell in ponds and lakes owing to growing construction activities.

Speaking to the media, Kumar demanded that the government engage HYDRA or similar authority across the State to restore the past glory of water bodies.

“Families of fishermen are pushed out of their livelihood across the State as water bodies are forced to get dry. None has the right to encroach lakes as they remain public property. The HYDRA should be emulated across the State,” he urged.

Meanwhile, PCC spokesperson Chanagani Dayakar alleged that BRS legislator Palla Rajeshwar Reddy who allegedly constructed his institutions in the buffer zone of Nadam Cheruvu in Medchal-Malkajgiri district, forced officials to overlook his constructions in the buffer zone of the lake in Ghatkesar.

“After indulging in wrongful deeds, it does not befit Palla to make allegations against the government action.

Your institutions have failed to adhere to norms and engaged in minting money by sucking blood of poor students,” he asserted.