BENGALURU: Bengaluru Development Minister K J George had to face angry citizens when he inspected rain-affected areas in the city on Saturday morning. The residents were furious over the lack of measures to prevent flooding.
George, along with Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy, Mayor Padmavathy G, BBMP Commissioner Manjunath Prasad and other officials visited the worst-hit areas — JC Road, Double Road, Shanthinagar, Ejipura, Adugodi, Avanisrungeri, Saraswathi Puram, Anepalya, ST Bed and Koramangala.
At Shantinagar, when George was speaking about the cause of flooding and the measures taken up, a resident interrupted him. He said the stormwater drain works taken up by the Palike was too slow and told George not to test the patience of residents.
At ST Bed Layout, where he reviewed construction of a stormwater drain, home-makers directed their anger at the team, saying that their negligence had caused rainwater and sewage to enter their homes. They also demanded compensation for the damages they had suffered due to the rains. George instructed the Mayor and the Commissioner to consider the demands within the legal framework.
At several places, George reprimanded the officials for the lack of progress of works. He asked them for reasons for delays and warned them of strict action if they fail to complete the works before the December 31 deadline. At ST Bed, he directed the authorities concerned to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the executive engineer and assistant executive engineer.
He later told mediapersons, “The city had never received 18 cm rainfall in one go. The city can handle 8-9 cm of rain, and when rainfall exceeds that, flooding happens. The problem is more in low-lying areas and the breaching of Madiwala lake added to the woes.”
A meeting to review stormwater drain works was held after the inspection. Commissioner Prasad told George that SWD works were complete for 177km of drains as on July 31, and works on 165km of drains were in various stages of progress. While George directed the officials to accord top priority to SWD works, he cautioned that there should not be any compromise on quality.