Monsoon’s here, JMC yet to clean Walled City lanes

JAIPUR: Monsoon has arrived in the city, but tenders for cleaning the dirty lanes in Walled City are yet to be invited. There are over 6,000 lanes in the city that are cleaned every year before the monsoon, but this year the work has been delayed.
Vikas Kothari, a former councillor from Walled City, said the dirty lanes will become a major problem in monsoon.
“Usually in the month of April, tenders are invited, but this year the work is delayed probably due to lockdown. A dirty lane is a space between two houses in the cramped areas of Walled City. Water and garbage get accumulated in them and Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) invites tenders to clean these lanes. With the arrival of monsoon, it seems to be an impossible task to complete,” Kothari said. When TOI contacted JMC officials, they assured that the tenders will soon be invited. “It was delayed because of the pandemic as JMC was over-burdened with work. Paper work has been completed and we will invite the tenders soon,” said a senior JMC official.
Rajneesh Pandit, a resident of Walled City said if the lanes are not cleaned on time, they will become a source of mosquitoes. “It is of no use if the tenders are being invited now. Foul smell will start emanating from the lanes during monsoon. With rainfall they will become a source for mosquitoes and dengue later on. It is too late to take any action,” said Pandit.
Similarly, JMC invited tenders late for cleaning of drains. Usually, it takes five months to clean the city drains. Tenders are invited in February, but this year they were invited in May end and not even 50% of the work is completed.