Hyderabads Hospital Road Turns Dangerous with Monsoon Potholes
Hyderabad’s monsoon season has brought with it a perilous challenge for residents and patients in Pragathi Nagar, Kukatpally, where the road leading to Prasad Hospital has devolved into a treacherous, crater-filled stretch. Potholes deep enough to trap small vehicles dot the HMT Hills Road, disrupting emergency services, school routes, and everyday commutes, and raising urgent safety and health concerns.
This vital arterial road, which connects Bachupally, JNTU-Hyderabad, Nizampet, and several educational institutions including Satavahana schools and Gurukul centres, has suffered neglect for months. Water pooling in the monsoon season has masked the depth of the craters, turning an already poor road surface into a daily hazard. Residents have reported near-miss incidents and growing anxiety over worsening conditions. Residents expressed alarm at daily visits. “Ambulances crawl through this stretch, wasting precious minutes in emergencies,” she said. “During medical emergencies, every second is critical—how many lives must hang in the balance before the road is repaired?”
Parents with children enrolled in nearby schools have also been forced to alter their schedules. “These potholes have become traps,” said a resident. “The water makes it impossible to estimate the depth. We start journeys 20 minutes earlier just to navigate the stretch safely.” His story underscores the wider ripple effects felt across Pragathi Nagar, where commuter stress now manifests in altered routines, stress, and a heightened sense of danger. Residents have also flagged the emergence of mosquito breeding grounds. Standing water in the potholes is already attracting mosquitoes, increasing the risk of mosquito-borne illnesses such as dengue and malaria. These conditions compound both the infrastructural and public health crises brewing in the neighbourhood.
Civic activist has been at the forefront of the campaign for an immediate fix. “This isn’t just a local road issue—it’s a city-level crisis,” he argued. “With commuters, students, and patients all relying on this route daily, authorities must act now.” He has written multiple petitions to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and the Roads and Buildings Department, but so far, only lip service has appeared. Private residents have shared stories of encounters with near-misses. A motorcyclist recounted swerving suddenly to avoid a crater, only to skid on the slick surface and almost collide with a roadside barrier. Others describe ambulances mounting curbs and jerking to avoid potholes, causing stress and disruption during critical transfers.
Hospital staff have reported cases where critical patients were delayed in reaching emergency wards due to slow movement on the road. One nurse recalled, “We had to carry a patient manually across the worst section because the stretcher vehicle could not cross the potholes. The chaos cost us precious minutes that should have been devoted to stabilisation.” A local JP Nagar resident and commuter who travels this way daily described the decline in morale among drivers. “Commuting used to be mundane, now it’s anxiety-inducing. At any moment, you fear an accident, a puncture, or a delay that could have long-term implications for someone in need.”
Such concerns have not gone unnoticed but they remain unresolved. GHMC officials responded that “monitoring has been ordered,” without clarifying a timeline for action. Meanwhile, the Roads and Buildings Department has scheduled patchwork repairs, but locals say short-term fixes will not address the problem at scale or sustainably. Urban planning experts have weighed in on systemic deficiencies. An urban development specialist, notes that recurring potholes can indicate faulty drainage or improper road design. “These are likely shallow surface repairs over failing foundations. Only a complete rebuild with proper waterproofing and drainage channels will stop this recurring crisis,” he said.
Residents argue that comprehensive repair isn’t just essential—it’s long overdue. A civic committee has proposed interim measures, including installing warning signs and deploying temporary safety patrols to guide traffic. NGOs are raising funds for public awareness campaigns. However, without official sanction for a full-fledged reconstruction, these efforts risk falling short. Local school administrators have joined the chorus of concern. A principal at described parents stopping students from walking. “We’ve urged authorities to erect safety barricades and lay temporary gravel before the potholes get worse.” Their social media petition advocating for “safe school routes” has received thousands of shares but remains unacknowledged by local authorities.
Residents of apartments near Prasad Hospital report that waterlogged potholes have shaken groundwater access and seeped into basements. One elderly resident said, “We used to rely on private borewells, but this road rut has filled our compound drains so badly that routine maintenance no longer suffices.” Public transportation services are also affected. Bus drivers reroute or slow down through the area, causing delays and overcrowding at stops. Passengers have taken to recording shaky videos onboard buses to highlight the safety risk. A city councillor is set to table these videos at the next municipal meeting. From a gender-sensitive urban perspective, pedestrian risks are high, especially at night. “Women walking alone face the triple threat of falling into potholes, being hit by swerving vehicles, or slipping in waterlogged pits,” said a local women’s safety advocate. “Proper streetlights exist, but the road’s structural issues make it treacherous.”
Despite growing public outrage, official response is sluggish. Interim GHMC measures—like temporary tar fillings—are visible but inadequate. Civic activists are now demanding a public interest litigation (PIL) to fast-track visible reconstruction efforts. State-level political response has also been tepid. Opposition leaders have called for a helicopter survey of Kukatpally roads but no action has followed. Amid public safety discussions around monsoon infrastructure, this stretch stands out for its dual impact: medical delays and commuter hazards. As monsoon intensifies, HMT Hills Road risks slipping into a hazardous zone akin to unserved urban debris dumps. The growing public demands point to an urgent imperative: repair, rebuild, and rethink operations before tragedy strikes.
For now, Hyderabad continues its monsoon parade under rain-lashed skies, but on this key road, every puddle may hide a catastrophe waiting to happen. The city must commit to decisive engineering rather than seasonal patch-up — because the next pothole might bury more than just a commuter’s wheel.
