Published On : Thu, Jun 29th, 2017

NMC jumps for salvage as its tall claims washed away in just 3 hrs of rains

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Nagpur: Nagpur Municipal Corporation‘s tall claims of monsoon preparedness fell flat after massive waterlogging across the city after Tuesday’s three-hour rain spell. The civic body has re-launched the cleanliness drive of nullahs and stormwater networks in many parts of the city.

On Wednesday toured many areas in east, south and south west Nagpur and found either lack of stormwater networks or choked drains that caused the flooding in these parts of the city. Heaps of garbage lying on Narendra Nagar nullah led to the flooding of the railway under bridge.

A team of NMC health department of Laxmi Nagar zone, armed with an excavator, on Wednesday morning re-launched the desilting work of the nullah.

“At least 10 trucks of silt is there alongside the RUB. If it is removed, the problem of water logging at the RUB would be solved to a great extent,” admitted a senior official present.

Mayor Nanda Jichkar, ruling party leader Sandip Joshi, municipal commissioner Ashwin Mudgal, chief engineer Vijay Banginwar and other senior officials visited flood-affected areas in the city to assess cause of the waterlogging. Jichkar also expressed anguish over poor monsoon preparedness by the zonal officers.

The Tuesday’s rain showed that the civic body did nothing except the routine desilting work. ,The sanitary workers failed to clean the stormwater drains at as many as a dozen places, sources in the NMC said.

Residents of Parvati Nagar too said that the drain is entirely choked. “It is a flood-like situation for us. Despite our request to the Dhantoli zone officials, it has not been cleaned. Water has once again entered many houses,” said Abhay Chowragade.

A team from Dhantoli zone demolished a portion of the stormwater network at Parvati Nagar to desilt it. The team removed at least a truck of garbage which mostly contained empty liquor bottles.

Jichkar also visited Rajendra Nagar in Nandanwan area, Hudkeshwar-Besa road and Dhadiwal Layout in Narendra Nagar, where rainwater gushed into many homes.

On Wednesday too, several roads and streets were found waterlogged. As drains in a number of colonies started overflowing as desilting had not been done, quite a number of houses in these colonies were inundated with rain water.

Students at Sanjay Gandhi School run by the NMC got an extended holiday as the entire school premises was submerged in rainwater even as schools reopened on Tuesday after summer vacation.

“The entire campus is waterlogged. On Tuesday benches and desks were floating in water. As the water was not drained out even on Wednesday, we had no other option but suspend classes,” said a teacher.

Meanwhile, the NMC would approach the high court and seek permission to demolish a bridge on Pora River on Narsala Road.Ruling party leader Sandip Joshi said the bridge was constructed by management of Adarsh School five years ago.

Joshi added that the NMC had issued a work order to demolish it because the bridge’s structure is weak and it may collapse any time. Some parents moved the HC and brought a stay.

The NMC now has a structural stability report of the bridge. The NMC will approach the HC and seek its demolition, he said.