Bangalore Sweatbox

Deccan Herald, 15 Sep 2007

Bangalore city in deep water

DH News Service,Bangalore:

It's pouring woes in Bangalore. Three days of heavy downpour has thrown normal life completely out of gear, marooning hundreds of houses, damaging several structures and bringing traffic to a grinding halt. The rains have claimed two more lives -- one in Nayandanahalli and another in HSR Layout, taking the death toll during the last 48 hours to four.
 

No end to misery

There seems to be no end to the City's misery. The Met Department has warned of heavy to very heavy rains in the next 24 hours. The City received 200 mm of rain in the last 36 hours, the highest during this season.

Incessant rains on Friday also played a spoilsport for Ganesha festival and markets in the City wore a deserted look.

A 25-year-old man, Shastri, was electrocuted in HSR Layout. Shastri, a car driver, was checking the electric wiring in his house after a disruption in the power supply at 9 pm on Thursday when tragedy struck.

In another incident, an unidentified woman was washed way in a drainage of Nayandanahalli on Friday morning. Hundreds of houses in over 166 low-lying areas are flooded with water.

The worst affected areas are in the southern part of the City–Madivala, Iliyasnagar, J P Nagar 15th Main, Hosur Road, Koramangala –where water overflowed from 7 lakes -- Arakere, Begur, Puttenahalli, Lalbagh, Madivala, Hulimavu and Sarakki.

The overflowing water from the lakes brought traffic to a standstill on the busy Hosur Road -- from the Central Silk Board junction till Bommanahalli. With the water level on the road rising, people began moving about in coracles.
Many motorists abandoned their two-wheelers and four-wheelers on the footpath and walked home on foot.

The scene on Hosur Road was similar to what had happened in October 2005 when heavy rains pounded the city.
 

BBMP missing

Yet, the BBMP remained a mute spectator.

"It is not safe to stop overflowing water from these lakes. If we stop it by constructing bunds, they may breach which could be more dangerous. It is safe as long as excess water flows out of the lakes," BBMP Commissioner S Subramanya said.

Several low-lying areas along the Mysore Road too were flooded. Padarayanapura, Kamakshipalya, K P Agrahara, Gowdanapalya, Pantarapalya, Muneshwara Block and several others took the brunt of the rain havoc. Traffic on Mysore Road, from K R Market till Jnanabharati junction, crawled at a snail's pace through the day.

Water-logging was a common scene on almost all roads across the city.

Besides claiming two lives, four houses collapsed in Prashanthnagar, Saneguravanahalli, Shakambarinagar and Nayandanahalli in the rains. As many as 32 trees and several power poles were uprooted.

However, the commissioner defended the BBMP, saying that the situation goes out of control whenever rainfall exceeds 80 mm. "I am not saying that we cannot do anything. We are taking all necessary steps to mitigate the woes and prevent further damage," he stated.

He also denied that two people died due to the rains. "Deaths were not due to rains. Reasons may be different," he said.

Meanwhile, Health Minister R Ashok, who is also in-charge of Bangalore, said 60 teams with 50 personnel each have been constituted for relief operations in the rain-affected areas.
 

HANDS-OFF LEADERS

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and Bangalore Urban district in-charge Minister R Ashok both chose to monitor rain relief operations from the comfort of their offices rather than visit the affected areas.

Mr Kumaraswamy, who also holds the Bangalore City Development portfolio, held a review meeting at "Krishna" and issued instructions to officials. He wanted the BBMP Commissioner to be available at his office 24/7. Mr Ashok visited the BBMP control room.

The City MLAs too chose to stay indoors rather than go out and meet the people and listen to their grievances.

#    posted by Mark Pritchard @ 5:46 PM