Repeated road cracks and sinkholes highlight aging infrastructure

Metro India News | Hyderabad 

A 10,000-litre water tanker was swallowed by a sudden sinkhole in Naveen Nagar, Banjara Hills on Monday morning, in yet another reminder of the worsening road safety crisis in Hyderabad. The tanker’s rear wheels sank deep into the cavity, and the vehicle was almost entirely submerged. Thankfully, no injuries were reported. GHMC and Water Board emergency teams were deployed immediately to retrieve the vehicle and begin road restoration.

Officials clarified that the incident was not linked to rainfall or waterlogging. “There were no leaks, and the line was dry,” said an official from the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB), suggesting that the collapse may have been caused by soil erosion or weakened road foundations. GHMC engineers began emergency repairs soon after cordoning off the area.

This cave-in is part of a growing pattern that Hyderabad residents have witnessed with alarming frequency. In the past four years, the city has reported at least seven major road collapses — in Panjagutta, Necklace Road, Minister Road, Chaderghat, Chaknawadi (twice), Himayatnagar, and Goshamahal. Many of these incidents were not caused by rain or open drain overflows but by long-term underground erosion, undocumented pipelines, or weakening of asphalt foundations due to old subsoil structures.

One such incident occurred in January 2023 in Himayatnagar, where a tipper truck collapsed into a 9-foot-deep crater. In February the same year, Chaderghat saw a 20-foot-wide sinkhole suddenly form in the middle of the road, barely missing vehicles. Just this year, in January 2025, multiple vehicles fell into a collapsed stretch between Goshamahal and Dar-us-Salam — again, not due to a nala overflow but due to foundation failure.

Urban experts say many roads in Hyderabad were built decades ago over concealed septic tanks or covered nalas with no proper underground mapping. They warn that without a citywide structural audit of underground networks, similar incidents will continue to threaten public safety. Civic groups are calling for urgent preventive surveys and regular structural checks before any roadwork begins.