Hyderabad sees 3 rain-related deaths in 4 days, Opp slams state govt

The second death took place on Sunday, when 44-year-old Greyhounds constable Solem Veeraswamy died of electrocution at the Jubilee Hills checkpost after he lost control of his motorcycle near a puddle of rainwater. Shabbir Ali said this death could have been prevented had proper safety measures been in place.

On Tuesday, six-year-old Vivek K drowned after falling into an open pit filled with rainwater in the Jubilee Hills area. The GHMC said the incident took place on private property and not under its jurisdiction. However, Shabbir Ali argued that the government still had a duty to protect its citizens from such hazards.

The Congress leader criticised Municipal Administration Minister K T Rama Rao for not visiting the victims’ families or the sites of the incidents, and alleged that he had chosen instead to focus on inaugurating the state’s new Secretariat. He pointed out the recurring pattern of similar incidents in Hyderabad over the years, with numerous citizens losing their lives due to open drains, house collapses, or electrocution. Notable past incidents include the September 2016 heavy rains that claimed at least three lives, the August 2017 monsoon rains that led to at least two deaths, and the October 2020 rainfall that resulted in an estimated death toll of at least 50.

Shabbir Ali also wrote to the minister demanding accountability and the convening of a meeting to address infrastructure problems in order to prevent such incidents in the future.

BJP state spokesperson N V Subhash also criticised the K Chandrashekar Rao-led government, saying it had failed to keep people safe during rainfall.

“Chief Minister KCR is making fake promises to the people. What kind of ‘Telangana Model’ does the ruling BRS party want to implement in other states when it is unable to take effective measures to save the lives of people in Hyderabad city?” he asked.

Subhash also claimed that many people had died due to wall collapses, by falling into open manholes and due to stray dog mauling incidents because of the negligence of the KCR government.

He demanded that the Municipal Administration Minister resign, taking moral responsibility for the handling of the situation.

Subhash said that people living in low lying areas, in particular, went through unimaginable hardship in the event of even scant rain in the city.