Hyderabad, Sep 22 (IANS): Resuming its drive against illegal structures, the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) carried out demolitions in Greater Hyderabad on Sunday.

After a brief pause in its action against encroachments on water bodies, the newly created body demolished 16 sheds in Nalla Cheruvu in Kukatpally amid tight security by police.

The authorities demolished unauthorised structures, except the residential buildings.

The structures were allegedly built in the Full Tank Level (FTL) and buffer zone of Nalla Cheruvu Lake.

According to officials, the lake has a total area of 27.14 acres. Of this, seven acres of FTL and a buffer zone were encroached upon. More than 50 structures including apartment buildings were constructed in four acres of buffer zone. Another 25 buildings and 16 sheds were constructed in FTL.

HYDRAA also pulled down illegal structures including apartment buildings and villas constructed in Kishtareddypet under Ameenpur municipality in Sangareddy district.

HYDRAA, which identified around 16 illegal structures, launched demolition in coordination with revenue and municipal departments. Most of these structures reportedly belonged to a local leader of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

Police had made tight security arrangements for the demolitions to prevent any untoward incident.

A hospital building and a three-storeyed building were among the structures demolished by the authorities by deploying huge cranes.

Affected residents alleged that the demolition was carried out without giving them notices. Some of them were seen crying over losing their houses.

A young man told media persons that the demolition had shattered their life as they spent lakhs of rupees to build the house. His wife is seven months pregnant.

The residents appealed to the government to give some time. They claimed that they raised loans to buy property and the demolition action has rendered them homeless.

HYDRAA has been carrying out demolitions at various places in Greater Hyderabad to reclaim the encroached land of lakes, ponds, reservoirs and other water bodies.

The State Cabinet at its meeting on Friday decided to give full freedom to HYDRAA in discharging its duties, especially clearing encroachments on FTL and buffer zones of water bodies spread across the Greater Hyderabad limits.

The HYDRAA jurisdiction covers 27 urban local bodies and 51 Gram Panchayats that have been merged into different municipal bodies till Outer Ring Road (ORR).