Palike undertakes mega remodelling of SWDs

The BBMP, for the first time, has taken up the remodelling of the stormwater drain (SWD) network across the four major valleys of the City on an extensive scale.

The Palike has listed 147 vulnerable points in the four valleys - Vrishabhavathi, Hebbal, Koramangala and Challaghatta, prone to inundation during rains.   
 
H C Ananthaswamy, BBMP chief engineer (SWD), who undertook inspection in four places on Monday where works are taking place, said that last year when there were rains, houses in low-lying areas were flooded. So this year, as a precaution, desilting and other remodelling works are being taken up on a large scale. He said desilting, de-weeding and related works have already started at seven points.

He said, “About 2000 houses near Koramangala valley were inundated during rainfall. For the last one and half months, desilting and de-weeding are taking place. A stretch of about 7.5 km, along Koramangala valley, is completed. Works are also taking place in HBR Layout 5th Block, Lingarajapuram, Bommanahalli, near Gali Anjaneya temple and near Koramangala passport office.”

Officials from the SWD department said that the cost of the project in Hebbal valley is Rs 3.91 crore, Rs 1.45 crore in Koramangala valley and Rs 3.85 crore in south zone.

During the inspection of drains at Ramachandrappa Layout, Lingarajapuram, residents complained of foul smell from unfenced open drains. While Philomena, a resident, complained of mosquitoes, Eshwari K S, another resident, said that relatives refuse to come to her house due to poorly maintained drains.

“The drain that connects to the SWD in HBR Layout was earlier filled only with rainwater. In the last 20 years, due to illegal sewage connections and dumping of waste by public, the drain has turned into a dumping yard. Recently, three people contracted dengue,” Eshwari said.

“Disposing of silt is the biggest challenge for us as people are non-cooperative. While silt collected from the drain at Koramangala valley is being dumped at Gollahalli near Gottigere, the waste from Hebbal valley will be disposed of at quarries in Kogilu Layout,” said S T Basavarajappa, Palike executive engineer, SWD, of Hebbal valley.