Even though the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) and other concerned agencies had recently carried out a series of eviction and demolition drives to combat the severe waterlogging in the Nayapalli area, heavy rains once again on Sunday left the road near the Iskcon temple along the National Highway inundated.
The vehicles had a harrowing experience in negotiating the stretch, as the water did not get drained. While many two-wheelers got stranded, the four-wheelers had to wade through waist high water.
Heavy rains triggered by a low pressure system over northwest Bay of Bengal and its nieghbourhood, left the city and several low lying areas in the city including Jaydev Vihar, Old Town area, Kalpana Square area, Sashtri Nagar, Gandamunda, Soubhagya Nagar, Paika Nagar, and many other areas inundated.
On July 1, a few hours of incessant rains led to flooding in front of the Iskcon temple and several other areas throwing normal life out of gear in the capital city.
The incident had sparked deep resentment among the city denizen. The BMC and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) also indulged in a blame game.
The BMC finding itself in the line of fire slapped showcase notices on several institutions and hotels including the Iskcon temple administration that were allegedly encroaching land near the highway thereby blocking the natural drainage channel.
later, the civic body had claimed to have demolished several structures to evict unauthorised constructions and clear drainage and sewerage to prevent flooding in several parts of the city. However, with the weather office predicting more rains on till August 16, the denizens’ fear the worst is yet to come.