HC frowns on floods in Cuttack despite ‘plan’

Cuttack: Orissa high court has expressed “dismay” over recurrence of waterlogging in several parts of the city on June 25 despite Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) producing a contingency plan to check it.
On June 21, CMC had produced a contingency plan before the special bench constituted for civic problems in Cuttack, giving details of deployment of more than 210 dewatering pumps to prevent possible waterlogging.
The court had then observed that logbooks are to be maintained relating to the hours of functioning of the pumps with all the details.
Reacting to submissions by president of High Court Bar Association (HCBA), Bijay Kumar Dash, regarding the plight of people in several parts of the city following rainfall, the bench on Thursday said, “If the pumps were available in those areas and the operators were also there on June 25, this court fails to understand then how there was recurrence of waterlogging as is evident from the newspaper clippings, which were produced before us.”
“This court expresses dismay at the lackadaisical manner in which the CMC has responded to the agony of the citizens of the millennium city, due to waterlogging,” the special bench of Justices SK Sahoo and V Narasingh observed. “Put up this matter on July 10 to address the issues relating to waterlogging and clearing of garbage from drains. The commissioner, Cuttack Municipal Corporation, and the city engineer shall remain present in this court on the said date,” it added.
The bench directed CMC counsel Debashis Nayak to apprise the court on an affidavit by city engineer “relating to the functioning of the pumps on that day... and whether any person has been held accountable for the situation, which arose on that day”.
Dash submitted a note which said three 60 HP pumps are required to be installed near junction points between branch stormwater channel (BSWC) and box drain at Kesarpur for discharge of drain water. Such pumps were earlier functioning at those points which mitigated waterlogging.
Taking it on record, the bench directed the CMC counsel to apprise the court about the feasibility of working out the suggestions given by Dash on July 10.