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Rainy wake-up call: BBMP's Rs 300 crore plan for flood-hit Bengaluru too late a move

  • Waking up after heavy rains lashing the city, the BBMP is in damage control mode
  • It has announced Rs 300 crore rain relief package for the city
  • This Rs 300 crore plan is still pending Cabinet’s approval though
Rainy wake up call BBMP Rs 300 crore plan for flood hit Bengaluru too late a move

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike has come up with a Rs 300- crore rain relief package under the Nagarotthana Grant to avoid flood, waterlogging and other rain-related problems.

Soon after the heavy rainfall the city received for most of Saturday and Monday morning the Indian Meterological Department has warned that merely 3cm of rainfall is enough to flood the city and that is a 'dangerous' prospect.

They pointed out the need for proper drainage system, rain water being directed towards the lakes and larger water bodies.  Now the plan as announced by Bengaluru Development Minister K J George, on Sunday, includes flood damage correction works, robotic excavators for cleaning up drains.

He said the BBMP will start cleaning and interlinking secondary drains to primary drains. Apparently he feels this will be a permanent solution to the flooding in areas like HSR layout and Koramangla.

The BBMP is planning to construct drainage structures and he said that people who have illegally encroached rajakaluve (stormwater drains) will be penalised.

The above mentioned robot excavators will call for a Rs 2 crore investment.

That’s not all when asked why the BBMP was slow to do all this before the rains in the first place he gave answers like – projects have been taken up but the unexpected rainfall spoiled all work and about heavy flooding he had this to say – Even New York gets flooded!

Not to mention, the BBMP, according to the minister has always been active and has not been sitting idle. Maybe it is pure coincidence that they became active only when the monsoon set in.

Also, the minister blamed a lot of the undone work and delay in projects on receiving approvals. Someone in the permissions departments is to blame according to the minister.

So no matter the questions you ask, no matter the facts activists have been showing to the BBMP proving their negligence in taking up rain related work early on, the bottom line is – work is still left to be done. Spending money like water on developmental projects in the rain when it is difficult to get them done sounds wise to the BBMP.

Even if, as promised by minister George, the 300-crore plan is taken up when will it be put into action, because now also this is a proposal, still seeking permission and by the time anything gets done on this ambitious projects, the city would have already braved three floods and will be nursing its losses while the BBMP blames the rain gods.

Before the minister finds more reasons to say why work wasn’t done, here’s what happened in the city during the weekend. Yelahanka Lake is threatening to breach its banks, the residents are busy clearing rain water seeping into their houses. Begur Lake overflowed and flooded close to 800 houses around them. Not to mention people and motorists have had to wade through knee-deep and in some places waist-deep water to commute once the rains began. If that was not enough the city roads is a literal death trap with potholes and huge craters dotting the majority of the stretches.

In fact, of the 19 km road in the City, 12 km is riddled with potholes and craters threatening to break the bones of the riders. As many as 4,900 potholes have been detected on 12 km stretch of the main roads, arterial-sub-arterial roads

It is being predicted that the City will continue to receive heavy rainfall in the next four days and mind you, the rain is expected to pound the city throughout the day.  So does the BBMP have to say for this?

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