Accused of failing to prevent flood damages, BBMP does damage control

A detailed plan has been designed to build a retaining wall for drains

A day after record rains wreaked havoc on the city, civic authorities got into damage-control, with the BBMP boss assuring preventive measures will be in place.

Amid accusations from residents in heavily waterlogged area that the BBMP failed to strengthen infrastructure after similar damages in the past, Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta asserted that the situation has improved over the years.

“We’re working actively on reducing the damages caused due to the rains. Earlier, there were 539 sensitive areas. Now, with BBMP’s constant efforts, we have been able to bring the number down to 185,” he said.

Gupta said low-lying areas were a concern. “There are nearly 750 major stormwater drains (SWD) in the city. We have built retaining walls in about half of these SWDs. The wall prevents overflow of water during heavy rains and is a permanent solution to control any damages,” he said.

A detailed plan has been designed to build a retaining wall for the rest of the drains, work for which would begin when the funds become available, Gupta said. Commenting on the damages caused by Sunday night rains, he said the civic body is working to bring back normalcy in all the affected areas.

“Major incidents have been reported in a few wards of RR Nagar and West zones. We’re actively working on pumping out water and cleaning the areas. Following this, our revenue officials will take up a door-to-door survey in these areas to assess the damage caused. Compensation will be decided as per the Disaster Management Act,” he said.