Morning rain washes away MC’s claims of readiness

Amritsar, July 27

The city experienced a heavy downpour in the morning today rendering hollow all the promises made by the Municipal Corporation. Major roads and commercial areas were inundated with rainwater, forcing residents to wade through knee-deep water just to reach their destinations. The disruption caused by the extreme weather has had serious consequences on routine life for many residents of the city.

All the major roads and markets witnessed waterlogging. The GT road in front of Khalsa College, Putaligarh, Court area, Aanam cinema road, Lawrence road, Heritage Street, GT road, Majitha Road near Gurudwara Guru Harkrishan, SSSS chowk, BRTS lanes and the road outside Alpha Mall witnessed heavy waterlogging.

It took three to five hours to drain out the rainwater from these areas. However, some of the stretches were submerged in rainwater till evening. The residents preferred to stay home to avoid inconvenience. The city roads witnessed heavy traffic jams after the rain with some vehicles developing technical snags while crossing the flooded roads. However, the Municipal Corporation staff made efforts to drain the water from roads but in the absence of storm sewerage and due to choked sewer lines, draining out the water from the city roads takes quite a few hours.

The residents claimed that the MC didn’t conduct desilting of sewer lines before the monsoon. “It was raining heavily in the morning hours. Some of the areas witnessed waterlogging as rainwater chambers were choked. The sanitation staff removed the garbage from the chambers and the rainwater drained out immediately,” said an MC worker on Majitha road.

Old building collapses at Ghanupur Kale

A portion of an uninhabited heritage building of ‘Kalean Wale Sardar’ belonging to the Maharaja Ranjit Singh era collapsed at Ghanupur Kale village on the outskirts of the city. The building collapsed during heavy rain in the morning. Two vehicles parked in the street were damaged. The debris of the building choked the open drains which led to water accumulation in the streets. A few old havelis of Kalean Wale Sardar stand abandoned. The old structures are in a dilapidated condition and need conservation.