Heavy rainfall triggers waterlogging in front of Iskcon temple yet again

Bhubaneswar: The recent eviction and demolition drive carried out by the civic body authorities to tackle waterlogging issues in the Nayapalli area seem to have failed in achieving the desired result as heavy rains once again  left the  road near Iskcon temple along the National Highway grappling with acute inundation problems.

Heavy downpour triggered by a low pressure system over northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining areas, left Bhubaneswar and several low lying areas in the city including Jaydev Vihar, Old Town area, Kalpana square area, Sashtri Nagar etc flooded. Similarly, water in and around the Iskcon temple swelled and stayed put without getting drained.

Last month on July 1, few hours of intense rainfall led to inundation in front of the Iskcon temple and several other areas throwing normal life out of gear in the capital city.

The incident triggered a public outcry as political parties engaged in war of words. The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) authorities and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) also blamed each other over the issue.

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The BMC issued showcase notices to several institutions and hotels including the Iskcon temple administration that were allegedly encroaching land near the highway thereby blocking the primary drainage facility.

Later the city municipal authorities had demolished several structures to evict unauthorised constructions and clear drainage and sewerage to prevent inundation of areas surrounding the temple.