High Court seeks reports on Owaisi institutions near Salkam Cheruvu Lake

High Court seeks reports on Owaisi institutions near Salkam Cheruvu Lake

High Court ordered reports within a week on GHMC approvals, FTL status, and permissions for Owaisi educational institutions.

• Telangana High Court gave GHMC, Irrigation Department and other authorities one week to file reports on permissions for constructions by Barrister Fatima Owaisi Educational Institutions at Salkam Cheruvu.
• Court seeks details on GHMC building permissions, Full Tank Level (FTL) determination status and approvals for running educational institutions on the site.
• Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar expressed dissatisfaction that earlier directions (April 13, April 30) produced no comprehensive reports after nearly three months.
• Irrigation Department said a joint inspection occurred on May 15 and sketches were sought from revenue authorities; FTL steps to follow receipt of sketches.
• Petitioner objected, noting a preliminary FTL notification from 2016 and questioned the need to reopen the FTL determination.
• Court warned it would issue “appropriate orders” if reports are not filed within the stipulated week.

Hyderabad’s courts on Friday put local authorities on notice over questions surrounding construction by the Barrister Fatima Owaisi Educational Institutions near Salkam Cheruvu, turning a technical administrative dispute into a matter with clear human and civic stakes. The Telangana High Court gave the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), the Irrigation Department and other bodies one week to produce full reports on permissions granted — or not granted — for the work done at the lakeside site. The tone from the bench was sharp; behind it was public impatience at what residents and petitioners described as a slow slide from regulation into apparent encroachment.

Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar, hearing a petition by an advocate who says the institutions have carried out constructions by encroaching upon the lake area, made clear the patience of the court had limits. Earlier directions had been issued on April 13 and April 30, yet the court said nearly three months had passed without the comprehensive documentation it needed. Now, officials have just seven days to file detailed accounts of GHMC building permissions, the status of Full Tank Level (FTL) determination and any approvals for running educational institutions on that land — or face “appropriate orders,” the judge warned.

For local residents who live with Salkam Cheruvu as part of daily life, the dispute touches more than legal boxes on a clerk’s desk. Lakes in Hyderabad are communal assets — cooling lungs in hot months, catchments for groundwater recharge and neighbourhood spaces for morning walks, children and birdwatchers. When construction blurs with waterbody boundaries, it’s not only paperwork at risk but water security, local ecology and the small rituals of neighbourhood life. Petitioners argued in court that the very presence of buildings on what should be lakebed threatens those everyday comforts and long-term environmental health.

At the hearing, counsel for the Irrigation Department told the court a joint inspection had taken place on May 15 and that sketches had been sought from the revenue authorities. They said steps to determine the FTL would follow once those sketches arrived. That procedural account, however, prompted frustration from the petitioner’s side. The petitioner’s lawyer objected, saying the department seemed intent on reopening an exercise allegedly concluded years ago. They noted a preliminary notification on FTL had been issued in 2016 and questioned why a fresh round of determination was needed now.

The friction is procedural but the stakes are practical: an FTL determination fixes the legitimate waterline and thus sets limits on what can be built where. If authorities delay or re-run the process, the concern is that time itself could be used to consolidate alterations on the ground. The court’s ultimatum is therefore aimed at cutting through that lag — compelling a factual record and forcing authorities to put their approvals, inspections and timelines on paper.

How the GHMC and Irrigation Department respond in the coming week will shape the next chapter. If reports show permissions were lawfully granted and environmental safeguards observed, the institutions will likely be cleared to continue after administrative scrutiny. If the records disclose lapses or unauthorized work, the court’s promise of “appropriate orders” could translate into directions to halt construction, restore areas or initiate action against officials or builders.

Behind legal briefs and inspection sketches are neighbours watching the site and parents whose children attend nearby schools. In small, everyday ways— the water people draw for their homes, the birds that visit reed beds, the shade under lakeside trees — the outcome will be felt.