Rain affects normal life in Phagwara city

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Phagwara, July 5

Normal life was thrown out of gear in Phagwara, Nakodar, Phillaur, Goraya and Nurmahal towns on Wednesday as the two-hour-long downpour accompanied by strong winds not only uprooted trees which blocked traffic on busy roads, but also inundated roads and low-lying areas of the city, including posh colonies.

The rainwater entered a large number of houses and residents had a tough time draining it out. Power lines too developed snags adding to the problems faced by people. Residents had to wade through knee-deep water in areas like Gaushala Road, Hargobind Nagar, Kherra Road, Palahai Road, Shiv Puri, Onkar Nagar, Gobindpura Mohalla, Baba Gadhia, New Model Town, Patel Nagar, Old Post Office road etc.

Chinks in the preparedness of MC was exposed as most areas were flooded on Wednesday.

The illegal 9-feet wide encroachments along the boundary wall of the rest-house near the Model Town area have been causing a lot of inconvenience to the residents as they are being forced to cross the water that has accumulated because of these encroachments. Advocate CR Gautam claimed that the MC could not encroach on government land in an illegal way.

The stagnant rainwater is also giving rise to water-borne diseases in the town. Former Mayor Arun Khosla alleged that the MC authorities had not made prior arrangements to deal with the situation.

Former Block Congress Committee president Inder Duggal said the Gaushala road market was located in a low-lying area and the MC officials had failed to initiate suitable action. Even open grounds have turned into ponds and streets into rivulets. Many roads in the town remained waterlogged, he said.