BENGALURU: The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Thursday informed the Karnataka High Court that it has taken expert opinion with regard to the effects of covering Storm Water Drains (SWDs) with RCC slabs. In an affidavit filed before a division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice S R Krishna Kumar, the BBMP has stated that it has requested the Member of Technical Scrutiny/Advisory Committee (SWD & Lakes) of BBMP to give a technical opinion on this issue.
Accordingly, the member of this committee had carried out a case study on flooding of Peenya Industrial Area, behind the police station, between October 1 and November 4, 2019. And flooding in the study area was observed near the covered portion of SWD on October 9 when it rained. He submitted the report on November 6.
As per the report, covered drains are vulnerable to choking, silting leads to flooding, desilting becomes difficult and drain-cleaning works get adversely affected. On the last date of hearing of the PIL filed by a city-based foundation, the court asked the BBMP whether expert opinion was taken before stopping of covering SWDs with slabs. In response to it, the report was submitted.
KSPCB issued directions
The BBMP has informed the court that the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has directed it and other civic agencies to keep SWDs open and that no sewage and solid waste should be put into them.
Priority to vulnerable locations
In the past, whenever open drains were attached to a road, they were covered with RCC slabs to the required length to prevent accidents. In so far as erection of chain link fencing is concerned, priority was given to critical and essential locations on SWDs in the interest of public to prevent accidental fall into the drains.