The Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) has warned residents against paying individuals who allegedly demand money by falsely invoking the agency’s name, saying strict action will follow on complaints received through official channels.
The warning followed direct complaints and reports on social media about people allegedly using HYDRAA’s identity to extort money. The agency urged citizens not to make any payment to such persons and to report the demands to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), HYDRAA or the local police station.
Complaints can be lodged with the ACB through its toll-free number, 1064, or with the HYDRAA Control Room at 1070. Residents can also approach HYDRAA offices or their local police stations, the agency said.
HYDRAA also clarified the limits of its role in dealing with illegal structures and unauthorised constructions. It said it does not independently act against such buildings. Instead, the agency removes dangerous buildings only when requested by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, the Cantonment Municipality Corporation or municipal corporations and municipalities.
The clarification is significant for residents and property owners because it distinguishes HYDRAA’s disaster-response and asset-protection responsibilities from the enforcement powers exercised by local civic bodies. According to the agency, its action is limited to dilapidated buildings that pose a risk to public safety and is taken at the request of the relevant local authority.
A senior HYDRAA official also reiterated that hostels operating from unsafe buildings should shift to secure premises by December 31, a deadline that had already been set. The statement places responsibility on operators of hostels in buildings considered unsafe to relocate before the stated deadline.
The agency’s warning comes as a reminder that demands for money made in its name do not constitute an official HYDRAA process. Residents who receive such demands have been asked to preserve the details and report them to the ACB, HYDRAA or the police rather than make payments.
The immediate next steps are the submission of complaints through the listed reporting channels and compliance by hostel operators with the December 31 relocation deadline for premises identified as unsafe. HYDRAA said action would be taken against those found misusing its name for extortion.
