Rain leaves several areas in Cuttack, Bhubaneswar waterlogged

Bhubaneswar: After braving heavy rainfall on Sunday, the residents in twin cities of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar had to grapple with acute inundation today due to absence of proper drainage systems.

Several low-lying localities in Cuttack remained waterlogged for over 20 hours since the city received highest 155 mm of rainfall last night.

Not only the localities in Pithapur, Badambadi, Gangamandir; collector’s residential office at Tulasipur was also waterlogged.

“Rainwater had receded but again today’s fresh spell of rain had aggravated the waterlogging situation,” said Collector Nirmal Mishra.

Local residents slammed lack of preparedness on part of Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) for the waterlogging situation in the city.

Besides, the blockages in the main drainage channels to facilitate JICA construction work also created problems in the discharge of the rain water, local residents alleged.

“We had used over 100 high power motor pumps last night but as the intensity of the rain was high, the situation could not be contained in several parts of the city,” said Municipal Commissioner Bikash Mohapatra.

Similar was the case in Smart City Bhubaneswar today with many parts of the city flooded due to waterlogging.

“Most of the drain and road repair works are incomplete for which the residents here are facing severe inconvenience,” said Gitanjali, a local resident.

Housing and Urban Development Minister Niranjan Pujari on the other hand maintained that, “Waterlogging is common feature in metropolitan cities during monsoon. We have installed pumps at several parts for dewatering localities.”