BJP MP Eatala Rajender on Tuesday launched a 60-km padayatra in Hyderabad demanding the relocation of the Jawahar Nagar dumpyard, alleging that contaminated water, leachate and toxic air from the facility are harming nearby communities, livestock and local livelihoods.
Rajender, the Lok Sabha member from Malkajgiri, began the four-day foot march after offering prayers at the Lord Ranganatha temple in Yedulabad. During a visit to Yedulabad lake, he said the waterbody had once supported fishermen and claimed that leachate from the dumpyard was causing fish deaths.
Rajender further alleged that livestock were falling ill after drinking water from the lake and that pollution linked to the dumpyard was contributing to kidney diseases, respiratory ailments and skin problems among residents. These health and environmental claims were made by Rajender during the padayatra and were not independently established in the supplied report.
He asked the Telangana government to prepare a project report for environmentally friendly waste disposal and prevent the continued accumulation of solid waste at Jawahar Nagar. Rajender also demanded that multiple dumpyards be established in non-residential areas around Hyderabad, saying the problem could be resolved with an expenditure of around Rs 3,000 crore.
The Jawahar Nagar facility receives around 8,000 tonnes of garbage every day, according to the report. The scale of incoming waste makes the dispute a question not only of landfill location but also of how Hyderabad plans, processes and distributes the burden of municipal waste across its metropolitan area.
Rajender alleged that Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had previously filed cases in the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal over the issue but had not taken concrete steps after becoming Chief Minister. He also referred to an earlier proposal that officials establish four dumpyards on Hyderabad’s outskirts, away from residential areas.
Telangana BJP president N Ramchander Rao expressed solidarity with the march and asked the government to clarify whether directives issued by the NGT, including measures to regulate waste dumping, had been implemented. Rao claimed that pollution, foul odour and water contamination were affecting not only Jawahar Nagar but also areas including Tarnaka and Osmania University.
Rao compared the situation with a waste-to-energy plant he had visited in Okhla, New Delhi, which he said operated scientifically and in an environmentally friendly manner. He alleged that basic waste-management rules were not being followed at Jawahar Nagar and said the BJP would continue its agitation until the dumpyard was relocated. The next stated demand is for the government to prepare an environmentally sound disposal plan and address the proposed relocation of waste facilities.
