Rain showers trouble, yet again

Amit Bathla

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, June 18

Residents faced a tough time after pre-monsoon showers waterlogged various parts of the city.

Various areas in the city, including Sirki Bazaar, Mall Road, Power House Road, Mansa Road and low-lying areas, were submerged in knee-deep water.

With a spell of rain, tall claims of the Municipal Corporation have fallen flat ahead of the rainy season. It has also exposed shoddy de-silting and cleaning work. Last month, the MC had constituted a team comprising 50 area incharges to ensure smooth drainage of water during the monsoon season.

Interestingly, Senior Deputy Mayor Tarsem Chand Goyal had recently questioned the preparedness of the civic body for the monsoon season.

Due to waterlogging, vehicles were moving at a snail’s pace.

Balwinder Singh, who works at a shop in Kikr Bazaar, said: “Waterlogging shows that the civic body has done nothing for smooth drainage of rainwater. It has been affecting our business.”

Jitender Singh, a resident of Sirki Bazaar, said: “No step has been taken to prevent waterlogging. If it rains for an hour, the whole city gets flooded.”

Bikramjit Singh, who owns a cloth shop in Sirki Bazaar, said, “The de-silting work should ideally start on time. The rainwater in the area takes around 15 hours to recede.”

“Residents living in low-lying areas face a lot of problems during rain. We can’t even step out,” said Reema, a resident of Singh Sabha Wali Gali.

“Overnight rain has exposed the preparations of the authorities. Waterlogging and traffic jams have become common after rain. I was stuck on Mall Road for more than an hour,” said Amar Singh, a rickshaw-puller.

Ram Niwas (34), who operated a motor to pump out water, said, “We have been working here since 4 am. We are expecting that water will be cleared by 3 pm.”

Rickshaw-pullers in Power House Road area had a field day as they charged from commuters at will. Some of them charged Rs100 to take patients to private hospitals located on Power House Road.

Sandeep Gupta, XEN, MC, said, “The capacity of the sullage carrier is still same. We are working to lay down a 12.5 km-long parallel pipeline adjoining the sullage carrier to increase its capacity. A Noida-based company is looking after the project.”

MCB Commissioner Dr Rishi Pal Singh could not be reached for comments.

Meanwhile, a war of words broke out between the SAD-BJP and the Congress over the waterlogging issue.

Arun Wadhawan, president of the District Congress Committee (Urban), accused the MC of negligence.

He said, “The civic body receives huge funds, but that doesn’t reflect on the ground. Why it does not take action on time. If the Congress gets opportunity to manage affairs of the civic body, party’s first priority will provide a proper drainage system to the city.”

Mayor Balwant Rai Nath said, “We are taking steps to bring down the water level. If we expedite the process, it will affect the sullage carrier that has less capacity at present. We could have done better for Bathinda if the Congress government in the state had supported us. It didn’t grant us enough funds. We have got Rs50 crore under the Modi government’s AMRUT scheme.”