Severe waterlogging looms over capital

The capital would face unprecedented waterlogging in the coming monsoon mainly due to its unplanned and insufficient drainage facilities, their poor maintenance, disappearance of the canals as a result of land grabbing and uncoordinated development activities carried out by government agencies, anticipates urban planners.
They said that new problems cropped up due simultaneous digging of several streets, lanes and by-lanes on the eve of monsoon.
Unabated waste dumping filled up many drains and wetlands choking drainage of rain waters, they said.
They said all these factors aggravated the perennial crisis due to the government taking no interests to tackle the problems.
The digging of the streets by Dhaka WASA and by the metro-rail authorities compounded the issues for the public. 
DWASA also dug up many important lanes and by-lanes all at a time on the eve of monsoon creating multiple public inconvenience, said urban planners.
The government’s failure to implement the decision it had taken after the crisis created during the last year’s rainy season to assign a single authority for the management of the capital’s drainage left the issues where they were, they said. 
Last year, even light rains submerged most of the capitals roads for five to six hours causing huge public sufferings.
Fire Service and Civil Defence pressed boats to help stranded people cross important roads at Motijheel, Malibgah, Mirpur, the Old Town the Inner Circular Road in front of Notre Dame College, and other thoroughfares under deep waters.
People were seen buying their own boats recalled the afflicted. 
Despite Supreme Court rulings the government’s failure to restore the canals grabbed by powerful people brought no silver lining to
an ever growing crisis.
To make things worse there was an open competition among the police authorities, the army and the other powerful groups to grab and fill up lowland in and around the capital for developing housing facilities.
Unabated waste dumping by both the city corporations filled up several canals notably Rupnagar Khal at Mirpur and Trimohoni Khal at Khilgaon. 
Road digging by the metro rail authorities narrowed down busy street from Abdullahpur to Topkhana Road.
Sarwar Jahan director of Policy Research Institute said that the government agencies did nothing over the years to minimise public sufferings caused by waterlogging.
Architect Iqbal Habib said draining rainwater into rivers and water bodies alone could provide respite from waterlogging.
Urban planner and architect Mubasshar Hussein said that unabated haphazard digging of the capital’s roads would increase public suffering during the monsoon. 
He asked the authorities to make drainage network functional immediately to facilitate smooth draining of rain waters.
He said that the government should take measures to store rain waters under the ground.
Planner Akter Mahmud said that the capital needed comprehensive drainage facilities and not unplanned drains of different agencies and bodies.
The urban planners asked the government to reclaim and re-excavate all the capital’s canals for smooth drainage of water round the year.
DWASA officials told New Age that they maintain 26 canals in the capital with the total length of 70 km.
Besides, they said that DWASA also maintains 360 km drains and 10 km box culverts.
DWASA managing director Taqsem A Khan said that DWASA took measures so that there was less water-logging in the coming monsoon.
He said that re-excavation by DWASA restored parts of six canals with a total length of 30 Km.
Dhaka South City mayor Mohammad Sayeed Khokon said they constructed and renovated huge drainage network after last year’s severe water logging during the monsoon.
Dhaka North City Corporation officials said that they were forced to allow a number of government agencies to dig roads.
They hoped that if there was no heavy rains people would not suffer much except for in select areas. 

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net