OSMANIA

UNIVERSITY
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES CASE STUDY

DONE BY:
MEGHANA. B 16121AA003
SAI SHIVANI. CH 16121AA006
SRI RAM. M 16121AA023
SRI VAISHNAVI. P 16121AA031
VEDA SRI. R 16121AA033
LOCATION and HISTORY

• LOCATED IN UNIVERSITY TOWN,

HYDERABAD, TELANGANA.
• FOUNDED IN 1918 WITH THE HELP OF
CHIEF ARCHITECT OF MAHBUB ALI KHAN-
NAWAB SARWAR JUNG.
• IT WAS ESTABLISHED AND NAMED AFTER
THE SEVENTH AND LAST NIZAM OF
HYDERABAD, MIR OSMAN ALI KHAN.
• IT IS THE THIRD OLDEST UNIVERSITY IN
SOUTHERN INDIA, AND THE FIRST TO BE
ESTABLISHED IN THE PRINCELY STATE OF
HYDERABAD.
• IT IS THE FIRST UNIVERSITY TO HAVE
URDU AS A MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION.
HYDERABAD BEFORE IT WAS A
PART OF DEMOCRATIC INDIA.
LOCATION OF THE SITE
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY
• THE TOTAL AREA OF THE CAMPUS IS 1600 ACRES.
• THE MAIN CAMPUS IS RANKED TENTH AMONG THE
STATE UNIVERSITIES, AS PUBLISHED BY INDIA
TODAY.
• AS OF 2012, THE UNIVERSITY HOSTS 3,700
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS FROM MORE THAN 80
NATIONS.
• THE O.U. IS ONE OF THE LARGEST UNIVERSITY
SYSTEMS IN THE SUBCONTINENT WITH OVER 300,000
STUDENTS ON ITS CAMPUSES AND AFFILIATED
COLLEGES.
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY
• THE UNIVERSITY COLLEGES ARE LOCATED WITHIN THE MAIN
CAMPUS OF THE UNIVERSITY.
• THERE ARE EIGHT SUCH COLLEGES:
1. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
2. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF COMMERCE AND BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT
3. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
4. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
5. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW
6. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF SCIENCE
7. INSTITUTE OF ADVANCE STUDY IN EDUCATION
8. PG COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION
 DEVELOPMENT OF THE
UNIVERSITY:

• THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY MAY BE DIVIDED

INTO FOUR PHASES, VIZ.
1ST PHASE – 1918 TO 1947
2ND PHASE – 1948 TO 1968
3RD PHASE – 1968 TO 1993
4TH PHASE 1994 ONWARDS

SURROUNDINGS:
RAMANTHAPUR CHERUVU
PEDDA CHERUVU
AMBERPET Near By RailWay Station
Jamai Osmania Rail Way Station 0.3 KM near
TARNAKA Arts College Rail Way Station 1.1 KM near
Vidya Nagar Rail Way Station 1.4 KM near
RAMANTHAPUR Kacheguda Rail Way Station 3 KM near
Secunderabad Junction Rail Way Station 3 KM near
NACHARAM
FLORA AND FAUNA
• 48 TYPES OF BUTTERFLIES
• 26 TYPES OF DRAGON FLIES
• 136 TYPES OF BIRD SPECIES THEN AND 106 OF THEM
EXISTING NOW.
• POPULATION OF PARAKEET, COPPERSMITH BARBET
AND LAPWING BIRDS AMONG OTHERS HAVE BEEN ON
A CONSIDERABLE DECLINE OVER THE LAST FEW
YEARS.
• JACKALS AND TWO SPECIES OF MONGOOSE HAVE
JUST VANISHED FROM THE CAMPUS ECOSYSTEM.
• THERE ARE 211 SPECIES OF PLANTS AND TREES IN
THE UNIVERSITY CAMPUS.
WATER BODIES, GARDENS AND
RELIGIOUS STRUCTURES IN THE SITE:
• THERE ARE 10 TEMPLES AND 4 MOSQUES IN THE UNIVERSITY
TOWN.
• MOHINI CHERUVU.
• LANDSCAPE GARDEN.
•PROJECT GREEN BELT.
•DEER PARK.
NEARBY WATER BODIES
MOHINI CHERUVU IN 2018
THE MOHINI CHERUVU:
• The students criticized the university authorities to have colluded
with senior politicians who have been eyeing the university lands.
• In the recent past, Minister Padma Rao had requested the OU vice
chancellor for land inside OU for the construction of double bedroom
houses.
• Students say that the Mohini Cheruvu and its surroundings nurture a
eco-friendly green environment.
• Even if the intention of the GHMC is to beautify the area, it would
lead to a number of outsiders entering the campus which would lead to
several problems.
• The establishment of bio-diversity park will happen and there is a
plan for large scale greening of the campus and the Mohini Cheruvu
would be protected.
MOHINI CHERUVU
IN 2000 IN 2005

IN 2006 IN 2007
MOHINI CHERUVU
IN 2010 IN 2015

IN 2016 IN 2017
DEFORESTATION AND IMPROPER
MAINTENANCE IN THE SITE:
 DEFORESTATION AND IMPROPER
MAINTENANCE IN THE SITE:
REUSE OF LOGS FOR SEATING
INFRONT OF THE UNIVERSITY
CANTEEN AND NEAR BOYS
HOSTELS.

WATER BODY FORMED NEAR A

TEMPLE DUE TO RAIN WATER AND
POLLUTION BY DUMPING OF
WASTES INTO IT .
 LAND PROBLEMS IN THE SITE:
• OFFICIAL RECORDS REVEAL THAT O.U. HAD 1627 ACRES WHEN THE
MIR OSMAN ALI KHAN INAUGURATED THE ARTS COLLEGE BUILDING
IN 1939.
• ABOUT 250 ACRES OF LAND WAS GIVEN ON LEASE, ANOTHER 25
ACRES IS UNDER ENCROACHMENTS THAT INCLUDE RELIGIOUS
STRUCTURES.
• THOUGH THE UNIVERSITY AUTHORITIES ANNOUNCED LAST YEAR
THAT THEY WILL CLEAR ALL THE ENCROACHMENTS, NOTHING HAS
MOVED ON THE GROUND.
• IN FACT, THE O.U. TEACHER’S ASSOCIATION URGED THE
UNIVERSITY AUTHORITIES TO PROTECT THE OFF CAMPUS LAND OF
UNIVERSITY.
• ABOUT 24 ACRES ATTACHED TO THE NIZAMIA OBSERVATORY IN
GREENLANDS IS PART OF THE UNIVERSITY. IT HAS NOW SHRUNK
DOWN TO LESS THAN 20 ACRES.
 LAND PROBLEMS IN THE SITE:

•ENVIRONMENTALISTS SAY LOSS OF OPEN SPACES TO THIS

CENTRALLY LOCATED UNIVERSITY HAS LEFT A TELLTALE MARK ON
THE OVERALL CITY’S ENVIRONMENT.
•HYDERABAD SITS ON THE GRANITE DECCAN PLATEAU; THE
SPRAWLING CAMPUS OF O.U. ACTS AS “NATURAL BALANCER”
CONTROLLING THE ILL IMPACT OF AUTOMOBILE AND INDUSTRIAL
POLLUTION.
• WATER BODIES ATTACHED TO O.U. HAVE ALSO SHRUNK IN SIZE.
•THE STATE GOVERNMENT IS THE BIGGEST ‘ENCROACHER’ AS IT HAS
ALIENATED LARGE CHUNKS OF CAMPUS LAND TO DIFFERENT
ORGANISATION.
• OCCURANCE OF SOIL EROSION DUE TO THE DUMPING OF PLASTIC
WASTES IN THE CAMPUS PREMISES.
• DUMPING OF BUILDING CONSTRUCTION WASTES NEAR THE TREES
LEADING TO IMPROPER GROWTH OR EVEN DESTRUCTION OF THE
GREENERY.
 WATER PROBLEMS IN THE SITE:
• The campus has around 60 bore wells which were sunk over a period
of time and one by one, most of them have gone dry.
Currently only around six bore wells are functioning and that too not
to their optimum capacity.
• Most of the dried up bore wells have been dug till 500 feet, while a few
till 1,000 feet.
• As a consequence the university is supplying water from water tankers
to satisfy the needs of not just the inhabitants but also of students and
faculty who come to the university's 53 departments daily.
• As per university officials, every day around 25 tankers, each of 6,000
litres, are supplied, amounting to usage of around 1,50,000 litres of
water per day.
• Despite this, the varsity gets regular complaints of water scarcity from
the hostellers, some of whom can be seen in the mornings going from
one hostel to another for water or taking bath outside, near water
tanks.
 WATER PROBLEMS IN THE SITE:
• The University's Fault In Maintaining Groundwater Cannot Be
Ruled Out As There Are Fewer Than 20 Rainwater Harvesting
Pits On Its 1,300 Acre Campus, A Large Potion Of Which Are Not
Covered With Concrete.
• Some Officials Also Blame The University's Lack Of Enthusiasm
In Maintaining The Bore Wells.
• However, The Present Water Crisis Seems To Have Alerted The
University Administration As It Was Recently Decided To Have
More Rainwater Harvesting Pits On Campus So That Rainwater
From This Year's Monsoon Does Not Go To Waste.
• The Varsity’s Geophysics Department Has Been Told To Utilise
Satellite Mapping To Indicate Points On The Campus Where
These Pits Can Be Constructed In A Week’s Time.
WATER CONSERVATION IN THE SITE:
• O.U. has developed a new technique to conserve water to boost
groundwater table.
• The new technique was successfully implemented at OU’s sprawling
campus spread over 1,627 acres. It also works during scanty rainfall and
deficit monsoon.
• The technique was developed by OU’s civil engineering department. As
part of the technique, OU researchers utilised ARC-GIS software to prepare
topographical, drainage and contour maps, land use pattern and land cover
map, to identify the spots for rainwater harvesting.
•They also prepared soil map, basin map and slope map to ensure the entire
quantum of rainfall goes into the ground through rainwater harvest
structures.
•Other pertinent data such as rainfall and run-off data was acquired from
India Meteorological Department (IMD) to develop the model.
 WATER CONSERVATION IN THE SITE:
• The extracted data was analysed and it was found from the soil map that
lithic (rock) contact appears after 40 cm from the surface on OU campus.
• Surface rainwater harvesting was found appropriate. Based on the contour
map, land use and land cover map including basin map, suitable points were
identified to construct rainwater harvesting structures. Hydrologic (water)
analysis was done and rainwater harvesting structure was designed as per
standard design guidelines
• This technique serves as a role model to other universities to implement
rainwater conservation.
• The extent of vegetation, built-up area and water bodies on OU campus were
also taken into consideration.
• The streams on the campus are seasonal in nature and remain dry in off
seasons. The total run off generated on 1,627-acres of campus was determined
by Soil Conservation Services run off curve number method. The land use is
pasture and treatment practice is taken as contoured since the area is flat.
• As 50-70% of the area is covered with vegetation, the hydrological condition
is fair too
PREVENTIVE MEASURES TO BE TAKEN:
• FOLLOW STRICT RULES TO AVOID PRIVATE VEHICLES OR
OUTSIDERS ENTER INSIDE THE CAMPUS.
• PROVIDE POLLUTION FREE TRANSPORT FACILITIES FOR THE
STUDENTS AND STAFF WITHIN THE CAMPUS.
• PROPER CONTROL OF THE WHOLE SITE.
• PREVENT DEFORESTATION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIVE
ANIMALS AND PLANT SPECIES.
• USE OF SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF
THE UNIVERSITY AND ITS FUTURE EXPANSION.
• IMPLEMENTATION OF RECYCLING METHODS WHEREVER
POSSIBLE.
OPINIONS OF STUDENTS AND STAFF:
• STUDENTS DO NOT WANT OUTSIDERS TO ENTER THE CAMPUS.
• O.U. PLANS TO ESTABLISH A BIO-DIVERSITY PARK IN 200
ACRES BETWEEN I.P.E. AND MOHINI CHERUVU.