Rain: ensure people are not inconvenienced, officials told

Rain: ensure people are not inconvenienced, officials told

The Hindu

Kumaraswamy directs civic agencies to form a coordination committee

# Many areas such as Cox Town, Ulsoor and Mysore Road were badly affected on Friday
# Roads in and around Ulsoor and Coles Park were inundated, causing traffic jams

BANGALORE: The rain on Friday has again exposed the vulnerability of many parts of the city to flooding, posing a challenge to the pre-monsoon work taken up by the civic agencies.

Though Hosur Road, Puttenahalli and adjacent areas, which faced the brunt of rain fury during September-October last year, did not face much of a problem on Friday, other parts of the city, including Mysore Road, Ulsoor, Kamaraj Road, Cox Town, Thippasandra and Coles Park were badly hit on Friday.

The Mysore Road-Outer Ring Road Junction near Nayandahalli and the junction near Rajarajeshwari Nagar Arch on Mysore Road were the worst affected.

As the Vrishabhavathi valley near the Ring Road junction has got narrowed due to dumping of debris, the Mysore Road was under two-ft. water for some time.

Due to the clogged drains, the overflowing water from Nayandahalli Lake submerged Mysore Road near the Rajarajeshwari Nagar Arch.

The natural outlets have been blocked by commercial and industrial establishments and the civic agencies have not cleared the encroachments. The problem is worse here as it is a low-lying area.

Roads in and around Ulsoor and Coles Park were inundated due to an overflowing nala. Because of the flooding there was traffic jams on all these roads.

Coordination panel

Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy was himself a victim of rain-related havoc as his official convoy reportedly got struck at the Mysore Road-Outer Ring Road junction near Nayandahalli on Friday.

The Chief Minister was on his way to Mysore around 9.30 p.m. He immediately issued directions to BMP officials to clear the road, which the authorities did.

On Saturday, Mr. Kumaraswamy held a high-level meeting of senior officials of civic agencies. Those present included Lakshmi Venkatachalam, Principal Secretary (Urban Development); K. Jairaj, Commissioner, Bangalore Mahanagara Palike; M.K. Shankaralinge Gowda, Commissioner, Bangalore Development Authority and others.

Mr. Kumaraswamy directed the civic agencies to form a coordination committee comprising officials of BMP, BDA, BWSSB and BESCOM to ensure that people were not affected during the monsoon.

He said the committee should meet once a week and review the progress of work.

Jairaj's visit

In the evening, Mr. Jairaj along with other senior BMP officials visited the affected areas on Mysore Road.

He said the encroachment of Raja Canal at Nayandahalli was under dispute and the BMP would move the court for vacating the stay on clearing the encroachment.

The BMP would immediately repair 800 metres of drainage between Nayandahalli and Best Club on Mysore Road to prevent flooding near the arch.

Also, the height of the road near the Ring Road Junction would be raised to prevent flooding, he added.