NEW DELHI: For thirty years, water-logging has been a major issue for the people of Krishna Nagar in east Delhi. Despite bringing it to the notice of the concerned authorities and posting images and videos of sewage water floating right outside their homes on the social media, no solution has been found.
“We have been flagging the problem for three decades. In 2017, we even demanded a boat from the Delhi CM to commute through flooded streets during the monsoon just to try and get his attention, but to no avail,” said BS Vohra, president of the Federation of East Delhi RWAs.
Explaining the root cause of the problem, he said that the origin of the problem is at the S-block of Krishna Nagar which is the tail-end of the locality. “S-block faces water-logging because it is a low-lying area and the wastewater of the entire locality drains out from there,” said Vohra.
A resident said that the MCD had once installed motor pumps to drain out the stagnant water, but they were later removed. The problem turns worse in the monsoon season when the dirty water from the nearby drain starts flowing back into the area.
“The whole locality begins to stink as a result and we all become susceptible to water-borne diseases,” said residents. When BJP leader Dr Harsh Vardhan was a legislator from the area, drains were constructed there but this also turned out to be a temporary solution.
“The government’s apathy towards such a serious problem is a matter of grave concern,” Vohra said. Proposing a solution for it, he said that the government could construct a rainwater harvesting plant or the waste water could be collected in a baoli (stepwell) which can be put to use in the summer. “Proper desilting of the drains before the monsoon season and augmentation and replacement of pipelines in the area too is necessary,” said Vohra.