HYDERABAD — As Hyderabad grapples with recurrent flooding, the city’s history with deluges spans more than four and a half centuries, according to historical records. Since the city’s construction around 1592 AD, Hyderabad faced several major floods before the devastating event on September 28, 1908.
The earliest recorded flood, occurring in 1572 AD, prompted the construction of the Purana Pul (Old Bridge). However, the city continued to see severe inundations:
• 1631 AD: Hyderabad witnessed a major flood that overtopped the Old Bridge and swept away populous areas of the new city. Hyderabadis at the time regarded this as the worst flood on record.
• 1831 AD: Another severe flooding led to a great loss of life and caused serious damage to the Chaderghat bridge, which was under construction at the time.
These historical details were documented in a pivotal report by Sir M Visvesvaraya, Diwan of Mysore, who was consulted by the Nizam’s government to devise flood prevention strategies after the 1908 catastrophe.
Visvesvaraya report preserved by the Telangana State Archives, also documented a moderate intensity flood in 1903, just five years before the great devastation. This event destroyed over 1,400 houses in various areas on both the Chaderghat and Old City sides of the Musi River.
Following the massive destruction along the Musi River in 1908, the then Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, directed officials to discourage the rebuilding of houses near the river. The Nizam instructed that house owners be provided with land for building at a safe distance, establishing an early form of flood-resilient urban planning.