VIJAYAWADA: With incessant rains lashing the city for the past two days, several major roads have become damaged, exposing their bad quality and the failings of Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC).
Pinnamaneni Polyclinic Road, Nirmala Convent Road and the stretch between Panja Centre to KBN College, One Town, are a few of the roads inundated with rain water. Motorists who had to struggle to wade through the pools blame poor drainage system for the stagnated water.
Drains running parallel to major roads have been neglected over many years by the civic body officials, say residents. Encroachments along the channels and frequent clogging caused due to the solid waste dumped into the drains were cited as the main reasons behind the current situation in city.
“Even when there is no rain, I have seen water flushing out of manholes on Eluru Road causing inconvenience to commuters and damage to the stretch,” said K Vijaya Babu, a commuter.
During monsoon, the situation becomes worse. The low-lying areas should be marked and preventive measures should be taken by the civic body to prevent stagnation of rain water on the city roads, he added.
When contacted, VMC chief engineer P Adiseshu said that the civic body was contemplating increase in height of several roads in the city by developing the drainage system.
A team of officials from the engineering department will conduct a survey to prepare a comprehensive plan to address the long-pending issue. Sanitation staff were instructed to use motors to flush out the rain water from the roads to avoid inconvenience to the commuters.
Measures are being taken to desilt the clogged, major outfall drains adjacent to roads. Public health department officials have also been asked to ensure that sanitation is maintained in city, he said.