EJIPURA down the drain

EJIPURA down the drain
R Jayaprakash | TNN


On a 10x10 ft plot is a five-storey residential building. The road is between 5x15 ft. This entire area lies 8 ft below the stormwater drain — at the level of the drainbed. A spell of rain means that the roads and houses are under sullage water. The residents are hardly worried: “We have to suffer for just three months, the rest of the year, we have a place to live.’’
This is Ejipura for you. The area, located behind Koramangala’s National Games Village, is invariably in the news during the monsoons for one primary reason: floods, floods and more floods.
WHAT AILS EJIPURA?
The area is adjacent to a primary drain — Koramangala Valley — which runs through the National Games Village. KHB authorities covered the drain so it could be used as parking space. Pillars have been erected over a distance of 1 km in the drain, on which the parking platform stands. The result: the pillars are obstructing the flow of sewage, with tons of debris getting blocked. It is not humanly possible to get into the drain to remove the silt or debris.
Added to this is the encroachment of the drain. What starts as a 30-ft wide drain near Infant Jesus Church narrows down to 15 feet as it approaches Ashwini Layout. During the rains, excess water flows back and gushes into Ejipura, as there is no other outlet.
Around 10 roads starting from Ejipura 9th Main and Ashwini Layout get flooded. When the downpour is heavy, there is water logging of 3x5 ft on the road and it takes more than five hours for the water to be cleared out. The water pressure is such that water flows back sewage into bathrooms and toilets in the houses.
THE CULPRITS
The primary culprits are residents and slumdwellers. It is very rare to find a building that has been built in accordance with the by-laws. The BBMP rule book has been quietly flushed down the drain! The area is also an engineering marvel of sorts — there are multi-storied residential units on 10x10 ft plots. Most plots measure 30x40 ft, and almost all of them have three-storeyed constructions. Being centrally located, it is thickly populated. Owners have built extra floors to rent them out as there are a lot of takers, thanks to the low rentals and proximity to the city. Nevermind the stench, mosquitoes and three months of flooding!
“To put it in a nutshell — it’s a high-density area. There are instances of over 10 people residing in a 10x12 ft room. The drains are incapacitated for waste and sullage to flow out. There are roads that are just 5 ft wide. Even if the authorities want to initiate action, there is little scope. The only solution is to remove the 1-km cover on the drain in the Games Village and remodel it.
“At least, the flooding will stop to a certain extent,’’ explain the area residents. Till that is done, the residents have taken their own precautions — with some ‘contingency plan’. Since the houses are at the level of the drainbed, they have constructed retaining walls in place of gates to stop water from entering their homes. Two steps to climb in and four steps to climb out — this is the most common feature in the locality.
Low lying areas identified by the BBMP
Vasanth Nagar, Shankarappa Garden, areas around Ulsoor lake, Dobhi Ghat, Koramangala, Murugeshpalaya, JP Nagar, Madivala, Malleshpalya, Kamakya Theatre, Padmanabhnagar and Ejipura.
BWSSB warning
The BWSSB has warned all citizens against flushing out rainwater collected on rooftops into underground drainage. This is leading to manholes overflowing during the rains, said BWSSB chairman NC Muniyappa. “Instead, the residents of high-rises should take steps to harvest and store rainwater or practice groundwater recharging. In case there is no provision to drain out water from rooftops, divert it to roadside drains instead of UGD,’’ said Muniyappa, adding that houses which have given a connection to UGD has to cut off the link before the rains.
BBMP on war-footing
The BBMP has taken up emergency civil works worth Rs 14 crore to prevent damages due to rain. BBMP commissioner K Jairaj on Tuesday convened a meeting of engineering department officials and stated that all zonal joint commissioners had been given the powers to execute emergency works to provide relief to rain-affected areas. He also released a list of activities to be started by BBMP as a precautionary measure.
GROUND SITUATION
THE EYESORE: The primary drain, Koramangala Valley, that flows through games village has been encroached on — a 30 ft drain narrows down to 15 ft. Flooding is common as the area is at the drainbed.
SOLUTION: Remodel the drain, widen it and deepen it. Remove the drain cover for regular cleaning. Or relocate residents of the area.EJIPURA down the drain
R Jayaprakash | TNN


On a 10x10 ft plot is a five-storey residential building. The road is between 5x15 ft. This entire area lies 8 ft below the stormwater drain — at the level of the drainbed. A spell of rain means that the roads and houses are under sullage water. The residents are hardly worried: “We have to suffer for just three months, the rest of the year, we have a place to live.’’
This is Ejipura for you. The area, located behind Koramangala’s National Games Village, is invariably in the news during the monsoons for one primary reason: floods, floods and more floods.
WHAT AILS EJIPURA?
The area is adjacent to a primary drain — Koramangala Valley — which runs through the National Games Village. KHB authorities covered the drain so it could be used as parking space. Pillars have been erected over a distance of 1 km in the drain, on which the parking platform stands. The result: the pillars are obstructing the flow of sewage, with tons of debris getting blocked. It is not humanly possible to get into the drain to remove the silt or debris.
Added to this is the encroachment of the drain. What starts as a 30-ft wide drain near Infant Jesus Church narrows down to 15 feet as it approaches Ashwini Layout. During the rains, excess water flows back and gushes into Ejipura, as there is no other outlet.
Around 10 roads starting from Ejipura 9th Main and Ashwini Layout get flooded. When the downpour is heavy, there is water logging of 3x5 ft on the road and it takes more than five hours for the water to be cleared out. The water pressure is such that water flows back sewage into bathrooms and toilets in the houses.
THE CULPRITS
The primary culprits are residents and slumdwellers. It is very rare to find a building that has been built in accordance with the by-laws. The BBMP rule book has been quietly flushed down the drain! The area is also an engineering marvel of sorts — there are multi-storied residential units on 10x10 ft plots. Most plots measure 30x40 ft, and almost all of them have three-storeyed constructions. Being centrally located, it is thickly populated. Owners have built extra floors to rent them out as there are a lot of takers, thanks to the low rentals and proximity to the city. Nevermind the stench, mosquitoes and three months of flooding!
“To put it in a nutshell — it’s a high-density area. There are instances of over 10 people residing in a 10x12 ft room. The drains are incapacitated for waste and sullage to flow out. There are roads that are just 5 ft wide. Even if the authorities want to initiate action, there is little scope. The only solution is to remove the 1-km cover on the drain in the Games Village and remodel it.
“At least, the flooding will stop to a certain extent,’’ explain the area residents. Till that is done, the residents have taken their own precautions — with some ‘contingency plan’. Since the houses are at the level of the drainbed, they have constructed retaining walls in place of gates to stop water from entering their homes. Two steps to climb in and four steps to climb out — this is the most common feature in the locality.
Low lying areas identified by the BBMP
Vasanth Nagar, Shankarappa Garden, areas around Ulsoor lake, Dobhi Ghat, Koramangala, Murugeshpalaya, JP Nagar, Madivala, Malleshpalya, Kamakya Theatre, Padmanabhnagar and Ejipura.
BWSSB warning
The BWSSB has warned all citizens against flushing out rainwater collected on rooftops into underground drainage. This is leading to manholes overflowing during the rains, said BWSSB chairman NC Muniyappa. “Instead, the residents of high-rises should take steps to harvest and store rainwater or practice groundwater recharging. In case there is no provision to drain out water from rooftops, divert it to roadside drains instead of UGD,’’ said Muniyappa, adding that houses which have given a connection to UGD has to cut off the link before the rains.
BBMP on war-footing
The BBMP has taken up emergency civil works worth Rs 14 crore to prevent damages due to rain. BBMP commissioner K Jairaj on Tuesday convened a meeting of engineering department officials and stated that all zonal joint commissioners had been given the powers to execute emergency works to provide relief to rain-affected areas. He also released a list of activities to be started by BBMP as a precautionary measure.
GROUND SITUATION
THE EYESORE: The primary drain, Koramangala Valley, that flows through games village has been encroached on — a 30 ft drain narrows down to 15 ft. Flooding is common as the area is at the drainbed.
SOLUTION: Remodel the drain, widen it and deepen it. Remove the drain cover for regular cleaning. Or relocate residents of the area.