'Smart City' under water: Rain exposes Ludhiana's civic cracks

Ludhiana on Thursday woke up to the heavy monsoon showers and with it, the city’s shortcomings were laid bare. Till 8:30 am, the city had received 29 mm of rainfall.

From the iconic Clock Tower to Madhopuri, Dhokka Mohalla and Chandigarh Road and even posh localities like Sarabha Nagar, BRS Nagar, Gurdev Nagar waterlogging turned roars into streams, while road cave ins at various places added to the chaos. Traffic movement was also disrupted in many parts of the city.

Despite tall claims by the Municipal Corporation, the downpour has exposed the cracks in civic preparedness, leaving residents stranded and questioning the ‘Smart City’ tag of the city.

In Kot Mangal Singh Nagar area, an elderly man on his way to work fell into an open sewer along with his bicycle. Fortunately, alert residents managed to rescue him in time, averting what could have been a major tragedy.

The worst affected was Model Town where road cave-in had occurred at Mintgumri Chowk on Monday, but has not been repaired. Due to water logging, people were getting stuck there. On Deep Hospital Roa, also in Model Town, massive potholes had formed and road has caved in at two places where four accidents had occurred so far.

Three students on their way to coaching class in Model Town Extension had a harrowing experience when their e-rickshaw overturned, leaving one of them with an arm injury.

Social activist Arvind Sharma said he had repeatedly urged the authorities to repair the road cave-in and clear the sewerage system, but no action was taken. "The consequences of that inaction are now visible to everyone," he said.

At Gurdev Nagar, a road caved in and a car fell into it. “For a long time, I have been raising the issue of illegal road digging. Such unauthorised excavation is making our roads hollow from within and severely weakening their structure. We have witnessed only one spell of heavy rainfall so far, and the results are already evident,” said social activist and city resident Ravinder Pal Singh Ghai.

“Just a few hours of rain led to severe waterlogging and streets were submerged up to knee level, making it difficult for people to step out of their homes,” said Rajwinder, resident of BRS Nagar.

Harshpreet Singh from Chandigarh Road questioned the civic preparedness, “Every year the same story repeats. Why can’t the authorities fix this once and for all?” “Driving through these waterlogged lanes is risky. Potholes are invisible under the water, and one slip can cause a serious accident,” he added. 

Prabhleen, mother of a 14-year old, said that it was raining heavily in the morning but still she stepped out to drop her son to school. “There was massive traffic jam on the roads. My son's school starts at 7:45 am and we were stuck till 8:30 am. Left with no other option, returned home. I think schools should declare a holiday in such circumstances,” she stated.

Dr PK Kingra, Head, Department of Agricultural Meteorology and Climate Change, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), said that rainfall is expected over the next two to three days. 

“Paddy is the major Kharif crop and it requires water, so rainfall will prove beneficial for the crop,” said she.