JOIN USThe slow pace of remodelling of stormwater drains (SWD) in the city drew the ire of corporators at the BBMP Council meeting on Monday.
Corporators accused the BBMP chief engineer (SWD) Siddegowda of delaying the work, leading to waterlogging and flooding in many parts of Bengaluru.
Bommanahalli corporator C R Mohan Raju and Hongasandra corporator Bharathi Ramachandra said work orders had not been issued in their wards that witnessed unprecedented flash floods last year.
Siddegowda, who found himself at the receiving end, said the city had an SWD network of 842 kilometres, of which 142 kilometres were concrete drains. “The state government has released Rs 800 crore for remodelling SWDs. The first phase is under way at an estimated cost of Rs 671 crore. As many as 206 works are in progress while orders have been issued for 408 other works. We have built 19.8 kilometres of concrete drains so far,” he said.
The chief engineer proclaimed that the works would end by December-end. According to him, the work in flood-prone areas of Bommanahalli and Hongasandra is nearing completion.
BJP corporator Umesh Shetty questioned the manner in which the contracts were awarded. He said each contractor was awarded about 20 works and there were no efforts to build them. Attiguppe corporator Dr S Raju demanded why the drive to remove SWD encroachments had come to an abrupt halt. Mayor G Padmavathi was unhappy with Siddegowda that he was not briefing her about the progress of the SWD work.
Congress MLC P R Ramesh said concretising the drains was a bad idea as it did not allow percolation of water. He said the BBMP should set up sewage treatment plants (STPs) and utilise the treated water to irrigate the water-starved regions of Chikkaballapur and Kolar.
BBMP Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad, however, said concretisation was necessary as SWDs carry sewage and its percolation would pollute groundwater. He explained that there were plans to reuse the treated water instead of letting it flow in the drain.
He also defended Siddegowda and said the remodelling of drains was not in progress because of the lengthy procedure of appointing a consultant, preparing the detailed project report, inviting tenders and obtaining approvals from the state government.
According to Prasad, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) treats 700 MLD out of 1,400 MLD of sewage.
By 2020, all the sewage will be treated under the Amrut scheme using World Bank funds.