Owaisi seeks urgent measures to tackle Telangana drought, El Nio impact; flags 65 MGD water shortfall

Owaisi, along with AIMIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi, attended an all-party meeting chaired by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka to discuss the impact of El Nio and drought conditions in Telangana.

During the meeting, Asaduddin Owaisi submitted a detailed representation dated October 28, calling for urgent interventions to safeguard power supply, drinking water availability, agriculture and the supply of essential commodities. He also sought contingency measures in view of declining reservoir storage levels and the need to ensure uninterrupted water supply to the public.

In his representation addressed to Bhatti Vikramarka, Owaisi welcomed the constitution of a Cabinet Sub-Committee under the Deputy Chief Minister's chairmanship to review, monitor and recommend measures to tackle drought and El Nio conditions across the state.

He also recalled that an expert committee headed by Dr G. Chinna Reddy had submitted a contingency action plan on July 30, 2026, requiring a budgetary allocation of Rs 803 crore, and urged the government to act on the report without further delay.

"The situation before us is grave," Owaisi said in the representation, citing rainfall figures up to October 27, which stood at 619.0 mm against the normal 825.4 mm, representing a deficit of 25 per cent.

Highlighting the severity of the October dry spell, he said Telangana had received 3.5 mm of rainfall against the normal 75.6 mm, a deficit of 95 per cent. Hyderabad recorded 2.8 mm against the normal 88.5 mm, while Medchal-Malkajgiri received virtually no rainfall.

The representation also cited a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) assessment dated October 8, which placed the probability of strong to very strong El Nio conditions through January-March 2027 at more than 83 per cent. Owaisi further noted that the 2026 southwest monsoon ended with a 17 per cent rainfall deficit and that 365 mandals across 18 districts had been declared drought-affected.

Referring to G.O. Ms No. 03 issued by the Revenue (DM-II) Department on October 24, Owaisi welcomed the declaration of 365 mandals across 31 districts as drought-affected for Kharif 2026. The notification categorised 111 mandals as severely affected and 254 as moderately affected, with the declaration valid for six months.

He noted that the government had directed measures including input subsidies through direct benefit transfer, drinking water augmentation, fodder arrangements, cattle camps, employment generation under VB-G RAM G and agricultural credit restructuring.

However, Owaisi argued that the order primarily addressed rural drought relief and lacked a dedicated urban summer action plan for Hyderabad, Cyberabad, Malkajgiri and the surrounding Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority region.

He said daily-wage workers, women, children and elderly people in urban areas faced particular risks from heat and water stress without a structured relief mechanism. He called for an explicit urban component to supplement the existing drought-relief framework, drawing on heat-action guidance from the National Disaster Management Authority and the Natural Resources Defence Council.

Flagging the drinking water situation in Hyderabad and its surrounding urban areas as a major concern, Owaisi said the Singur reservoir was holding only 3.03 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) against its capacity of 29.92 TMC, or 10.13 per cent.

He said the combined storage in five of the eight reservoirs supplying the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) stood at 9.28 TMC against a capacity of 38.95 TMC, amounting to just 23.82 per cent.

According to the representation, HMWSSB's water supply had declined from the normal 597 million gallons per day to 576.55 MGD, while several areas of the twin cities, Cyberabad and Malkajgiri, were experiencing shortages. Tanker demand had averaged between 6,000 and 8,000 bookings daily.

Owaisi listed Krishna I, II and III as contributing a combined 270 MGD, Godavari 160 MGD, Singur and Manjeera together 105 MGD, Osman Sagar 15 MGD and Himayatsagar 10 MGD to Hyderabad and adjoining urban and suburban areas.

He expressed particular concern over the deteriorating storage in Singur and Manjeera, which he said were almost dried up.

"In view of the shortage from Singur and Manjeera, 40 MGD is additionally being drawn from the Godavari source; however, a total shortfall of 65 MGD remains," he stated.

The AIMIM chief also flagged public complaints about coloured and foul-smelling water whenever supplies were drawn from Osman Sagar and Himayatsagar, and sought appropriate treatment, quality testing and public reporting.

He urged the government to prepare and publish a dedicated summer drinking water plan for Hyderabad and the HMDA region, detailing source-wise availability, zone-wise supply schedules, contingency sourcing deadlines and a public-facing dashboard.

He also sought a monthly water account, signed by the Irrigation Department, HMWSSB and Mission Bhagiratha, within 72 hours, covering legally available water shares, minimum drawdown levels, treatment and trunk-main limitations, and monthly demand in the core urban region.

The representation called for testing normal, adverse and severe inflow scenarios, alongside demand scenarios 10 per cent and 20 per cent above baseline, before the summer of 2027.

Owaisi further sought the procurement of tanker capacity based on verified locality-level deficits, including smaller 2.5-5 kilolitre vehicles for narrow lanes in the Old City. He proposed separate fleets for potable and reclaimed water, adequate filling bays and payments linked to verified quantities of safe water delivered.

He called for priority water deliveries to hospitals, schools, hostels and orphanages, with ordinary deliveries within 24 hours and a six-hour response to critical institutional failures. He also sought telephone and offline grievance mechanisms alongside booking applications, with information available in Telugu, Urdu and English.

He urged the government to explain how HMWSSB would address the 65 MGD deficit and what preventive measures had been taken to avert the shortage.

Owaisi also raised concerns over falling groundwater levels and the increasing risk of borewell failures.

Citing August 2026 data from the Integrated Decision Support System (IDSS), he said groundwater depth in Hyderabad district stood at 9.62 metres, with a year-on-year decline of 3.51 metres. In Medchal-Malkajgiri, groundwater depth stood at 11.80 metres, reflecting a decline of 3.99 metres.

He also referred to the Central Ground Water Board's 2025 assessment, which classified eight of Hyderabad's 16 groundwater assessment units as overexploited, seven as critical and one as semi-critical, with none categorised as safe.

The representation cited reports that nearly 50 per cent, or 15 lakh, of Telangana's 30 lakh agricultural borewells had already gone dry.

Owaisi sought the publication of the September groundwater bulletin and the latest comparable October readings. He also called for a comprehensive register of municipal, emergency, apartment and bulk-supply wells, recording permissions, locations, pump depths, groundwater levels, discharge, recovery, operating hours and water quality.

He proposed that commercial water suppliers disclose their sources and authorised daily withdrawals, supported by meters and abstraction logs for permitted bulk sources.

He further stressed that emergency wells used for drinking water must undergo microbial and chemical testing, pointing out that chlorination does not remove contaminants such as nitrate and fluoride.

On electricity supply, Owaisi said peak demand had crossed 20,000 MW on October 15 and was projected to reach 22,000-23,000 MW during the summer of 2027.

He warned that higher temperatures would increase electricity consumption from air conditioners, coolers, refrigerators and water pumps, particularly during evening and night hours in Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Medchal.

The representation flagged overloaded feeders and transformers, power network failures and reports of unannounced electricity cuts affecting farmers and standing crops.

Owaisi urged the government to operate Telangana State Power Generation Corporation Limited (TG-Genco) plants at full capacity, particularly the Yadadri Thermal Power Plant, which he said should operate at its full 4,000 MW capacity instead of the current 1,200-1,500 MW.

He also sought additional short-term power procurement, especially for evening hours, to cover anticipated shortages before January 2027.

The AIMIM chief called for feeder and transformer capacity upgrades well before summer, advance procurement of spare materials, round-the-clock deployment of Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company Limited (TSSPDCL) staff, particularly during night shifts, and an increase in field operations and breakdown-response teams.

He also sought special preparedness for unseasonal wind and rain events expected in Hyderabad during February-March.

Owaisi highlighted the impact of drought and inadequate irrigation on farmers, citing a decline of 13.22 lakh acres in Kharif crop area, from 1.39 crore acres to 1.26 crore acres.

He said paddy cultivation had declined by 18 per cent, from 69.19 lakh acres to 57 lakh acres, while nearly 20 lakh acres of crops were reportedly damaged. The representation also cited live storage in major and medium reservoirs at 179.63 TMC against a total capacity of 585 TMC.

With reports suggesting that the government was considering a crop holiday for the Rabi season, Owaisi sought a clear and dependable Yasangi irrigation schedule for every command area, based on a joint assessment by the Agriculture and Irrigation Departments.

He said any decision to declare a crop holiday should be accompanied by a concrete support package, including compensation, seeds and inputs for alternative crops such as pulses, millets and oilseeds, extension services and reliable marketing arrangements.

He also called for completion of mandal-wise drought screening, verification and crop-loss assessments, proposing assessments within 15 days and payments within 30 days of approval, including tenant farmers wherever covered.

Owaisi urged the government to prioritise the protection of viable standing crops and perennial plantations in accordance with advisories from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTAU) and ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (ICAR-CRIDA).

He also sought district-level assessments of fodder availability and livestock water requirements.

The representation also raised concerns over drinking water availability in rural areas and towns under Mission Bhagiratha.

Owaisi noted that the programme's published service levels provided for 100 litres per person per day in rural areas and 135-150 litres per person per day in urban local bodies.

With reservoir and tank storage declining, he sought an audit of actual water quantity, pressure, quality and supply interruptions through the dry season, with the findings made public.

He also called for repairs to tanks, feeder channels, sluices and groundwater recharge assets wherever technically justified, with priority given to reliable water retention and the area benefiting rather than expenditure or the number of structures completed.

Owaisi warned that water insecurity could raise construction costs, delay project handovers and increase apartment maintenance expenses. He said reports of a possible suspension of construction activity also threatened the livelihoods of lakhs of daily-wage construction workers.

Citing figures in the representation, he said real estate, dwellings and professional services together accounted for 23.4 per cent of Telangana's gross state value added (GSVA), while construction contributed approximately 5.66 per cent.

He proposed a joint programme involving HMWSSB, planning authorities and the Telangana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (TG RERA) to support construction continuity, requiring large new projects and major expansions to maintain project-level water accounts.

He also sought the availability of quality-assured reclaimed water for construction clusters, with agreed daily volumes, testing, backup arrangements and published prices. He stressed that concrete quality standards under IS 456 and prescribed curing periods must be maintained.

The representation further called for disclosure of expected water sources, dependence on tankers and sewage treatment plant operating costs in project information and handover documents.

Owaisi urged the government to avoid blanket construction stoppages that could hurt employment and homebuyers, while ensuring that existing lawful projects received practical transition arrangements and supply support.

On essential commodities, he highlighted rising retail prices and cited figures indicating sugar prices had increased from Rs 45 to around Rs 80 per kg, jaggery from Rs 55 to Rs 78, sunflower oil from Rs 110 to Rs 195 per litre and onions from Rs 30 to Rs 70 per kg.

He also cited ginger prices of around Rs 300 per kg, garlic at approximately Rs 400 per kg, chicken at nearly Rs 300 per kg and eggs costing up to Rs 8 each.

The representation described Telangana as experiencing the country's highest retail inflation, with rural inflation close to 10 per cent, and said the state produced only around 40-50 per cent of its vegetable requirements, leaving it heavily dependent on supplies from Maharashtra and Karnataka, where crops were also facing damage.

Owaisi urged the government to implement the announced expansion of the Public Distribution System (PDS) to include subsidised edible oil, sugar, wheat and pulses through fair price shops.

He also sought a special enforcement drive against illegal hoarding and stockpiling, along with weekly publication of retail and wholesale prices of essential commodities in Hyderabad and neighbouring districts and a grievance mechanism to address overcharging.

Owaisi's representation further sought a dedicated urban and peri-urban heat action plan to supplement the drought-related government order issued on October 24.

He argued that Hyderabad, Cyberabad, Malkajgiri and the wider HMDA region faced distinct heat and water vulnerabilities that were not adequately covered by the existing rural drought-relief framework.

The representation highlighted the risks faced by construction labourers, street vendors, domestic workers, transport workers and sanitation staff, who could lose working hours and face prolonged heat exposure between March and September.

It also noted that employment provisions under VB-G RAM G were confined to rural areas, leaving urban daily-wage workers without a comparable structured relief mechanism.

Owaisi stressed that women, particularly elderly women, and children were disproportionately exposed to the consequences of extreme heat and water shortages.

He called for urban-specific measures to address these vulnerabilities and ensure that drought preparedness extended beyond rural relief to include the needs of the state's major urban centres.

The representation placed a series of requests before the state government covering drinking water security, groundwater management, electricity preparedness, agricultural support, rural water supply, construction activity, inflation and urban heat protection, urging timely intervention ahead of the anticipated El Nio-related challenges in the coming months. (ANI)