Authority works — GHMC
GHMC Hyderabad GPR Survey and Utility Mapping for Core Zones
Radar and locator work on Charminar, Khairatabad and Secunderabad roads, drawn up for tenders and cutting files in the six-zone GHMC left after February 2026.
Quick AnswerA GHMC Hyderabad GPR survey pins down the HMWSSB mains, TGSPDCL cables, Bhagyanagar Gas pipes and operator fibre under an old-city carriageway before a pick touches it. Since February 2026 GHMC covers six core zones, so first confirm which corporation holds your road (Source: Deccan Chronicle, 11 February 2026). Ground penetrating radar (GPR) passes over the granite and locator checks on live cables lead to an AutoCAD sheet; for long routes there is more on utility corridor mapping.
What does a GHMC Hyderabad utility survey involve after the 2026 split?
A GHMC Hyderabad utility survey is a ground check of one road or plot in the post-split corporation, listing the underground utilities so the excavator never meets them. In a Charminar lane or on a Khairatabad arterial, radar sweeps and a locator on energised cables produce a sheet. Each line gets an offset, a depth estimate and, where traceable, its owning agency.
The boundary matters more than it used to. GO Ms No. 55, dated 11 February 2026, split the old corporation into three. They are GHMC, the Cyberabad Municipal Corporation and the Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation. The new GHMC is the historic core, reported at about 689 sq km, with 150 wards in six zones. On 12 September 2026 the Telangana Assembly passed the Core Urban Region (Integrated Governance) Bill, intended to replace the 1955 Act for all three bodies. A writ petition against GO 55 was heard by the High Court on 19 February 2026, and reports mentioned notices to the state and Union, not a stay. Check the current position before an application goes in. (Sources: Deccan Chronicle, 11 February 2026; The News Minute, 12 September 2026; The South First, 20 February 2026.)
Which parts of Hyderabad are still under GHMC?
The six zones that remained with GHMC are Khairatabad, Secunderabad, Shamshabad, Rajendranagar, Charminar and Golconda. That takes in the old city around the Charminar, the central business streets and a southern belt towards the airport. The IT corridor in the west and much of the east now sit with the other two corporations.
| GHMC zone | Streets you will meet | Usual cause of delay on site |
|---|---|---|
| Charminar | Narrow lanes, dense shopfronts | Crowded footways, many house connections |
| Golconda | Old villages beside newer colonies | Rock near the surface and echoes off boulders |
| Khairatabad | Arterial roads, flyovers | Short permitted hours and deep trunk mains |
| Secunderabad | Older colonies near the railway | Old pipes missing from any record |
| Rajendranagar and Shamshabad | Fast-growing edge with wide new roads | Recent ducts that no drawing shows yet |
Table note: the western IT belt left GHMC in the split, so for those roads read what a Cyberabad Municipal Corporation utility survey costs.
Why does Hyderabad's granite matter for radar?
The city sits on Deccan plateau granite, often under thin soil, which changes both service depth and the radar picture. Many lines were laid in trenches cut into weathered rock. The city's rounded boulders return bold arch-shaped reflected signals that an inexperienced reader can mistake for a pipe crossing.
Deccan granite, when dry, is generous to this geophysical method: pulses of electromagnetic waves pass through it, so depth of view often beats clay ground. The skill lies in telling a boulder from a duct among the buried objects. Close cross-lines follow each echo along its length, because a pipe continues and a boulder stops, and lifted covers settle doubtful points. Which antenna suits which Hyderabad street is covered on our page on GPR survey in Hyderabad.
Who owns the lines under a GHMC road?
Rarely GHMC alone. Potable mains and sewers belong to HMWSSB, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board, and power cables to the southern distribution company, TGSPDCL. Bhagyanagar Gas lays the piped gas, operators own the telecom ducts, and GHMC looks after roads, footpaths and storm drains.
Every agency whose utility lines you cross may need to see the drawing, so naming owners early saves weeks. Our method page has more about utility mapping.
How does the survey fit road-cutting permission and tenders?
Do it before you apply. A cutting or HDD request clears sooner when the trench or bore line and each service crossing are already drawn. Forms and fees may shift while the corporation settles, so none are listed here. Radar lines run both ways, each service is spray-marked, and the AutoCAD or GIS drawing comes with a crossing schedule. Your contractor or consultant then lodges the request with our sheet attached.
Our utility survey guide for Hyderabad walks through each step. For a road on the eastern side, now under Malkajgiri, compare what a Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation utility survey costs.
What does a GHMC utility survey cost?
Metres scanned set the bill, with a project floor and a discount that deepens on longer orders.
- ₹24 per metre for a standard GPR scan
- ₹32 per metre for an L-section with depth profile
- ₹1,00,000 minimum per project in Hyderabad
- Whole-order discount of 25% past 100 km, 40% past 500 km and 50% past 1,000 km
- GST on top of every figure
An old-city road needing 5.5 km of standard scanning costs ₹1,32,000 at ₹24 a metre, plus GST. Shorter work rises to the floor, so 3 km, worth ₹72,000 on rate, is charged the ₹1,00,000 minimum. One of our engineers works from home in Hyderabad, and a GHMC road scan opens on the day you approve or within one business day. Set-up or travel, where chargeable, is itemised in the quotation.
How are old-city routes near monuments surveyed?
With positions and levels taken from fixed points, so the route can be shown to heritage and traffic officers. Around Charminar and the old bazaars, a trench line often passes listed structures, arches and old stone drains, and officers want distances. Control comes in from open ground nearby with DGPS survey in Hyderabad. A total station heritage-area survey then records building faces, arch footings, chamber lids and road levels. Each buried line is plotted with its distance from the nearest structure.
Who runs GPR survey on GHMC roads, and for whom?
Salaried Mezux engineers, using radars from our own fleet. From 2003 onward the radar pool has grown to 58 GPR systems, all under ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 audited procedures. No Hyderabad field work goes to outside crews. GHMC has issued us direct work orders. Contractors, design consultants, utilities and owners whose construction projects go to its zone offices engage us as well.
For GHMC utility mapping on a route in Charminar or Golconda, send us your Hyderabad site details, and a Mezux engineer answers with a written scope.
Frequently asked questions
Does my road still belong to GHMC after February 2026?
Check the zone. GHMC kept Khairatabad, Secunderabad, Shamshabad, Rajendranagar, Charminar and Golconda, while western and eastern areas moved to Cyberabad and Malkajgiri (Source: The South First, 11 February 2026).
Was the GHMC split stayed by the High Court?
Reports of the 19 February 2026 hearing described notices to the state and Union, with no stay (Source: The South First, 20 February 2026). Confirm the latest position with your consultant.
Do you cover sites across Hyderabad, not only GHMC?
Yes. Sites on the ORR belt and elsewhere in the city are on survey coverage in Hyderabad at a glance.
Can you also fix the survey to ground coordinates?
Yes. Ground control points place the utility maps on your design grid; read how our DGPS survey works.
How do you separate a granite boulder from a buried pipe on the radar?
In the GPR data a pipe continues from one scan line to the next, while a boulder does not. Doubtful points get a lifted cover or a small trial pit.
What about Charminar lanes that no vehicle can enter?
Yes. A ground penetrating radar survey cart is wheeled by hand, so any gali a person can walk can be scanned.
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Written by Saniya Parveen · Technically reviewed by Rahul Rai · Updated 8 November 2026