Waterlogged homes expose Nagpur municipal corporation’s rain preparedness

NAGPUR: Thursday’s heavy rain caused waterlogging in several areas so much that rainwater entered many homes in East, South and North Nagpur exposing Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s poor pre-monsoon work.
Pictures of the flooding went viral on social media as people expressed anguish over the NMC’s lack of preparedness.
“Waterlogging is a yearly problem. There is always threat of accidents by driving on rain-battered roads. Authorities must build a proper drainage system,” were some of the common complaints of the residents.
Localities like Sangharsh Nagar, Haider Ali Maidan in Prabhag 3 witnessed knee-deep waterlogging till Friday morning. Many houses were flooded after rainwater gushed into residential localities in Sangharsh Nagar.
Similar situation was seen in Indiramata Nagar locality where rainwater entered almost every house. Residents told TOI that they had alerted the office of assistant municipal commissioner of Satranjipura zone, but nothing was done. The zone did not take up any pre-monsoon activity like cleaning of stormwater networks, sewerage lines etc. If such is the situation in the first spell of rains, residents fear worsening times in the coming days.
After TOI informed municipal commissioner Radhakrishnan B about waterlogging in the locality, Satranjipura zone team rushed to Indiramata Nagar on Thursday night and drained out water from the locality. Residents led by Shanawaz Sheikh on Friday gheraoed the Satranjipura zone office to raise the issue.
A similar situation was witnessed in many areas in South and East Nagpur. Residents from these parts blamed the poor pre-monsoon work like every year. The downpour and waterlogging also slowed down traffic flow on key roads in and around the city.