Unrelenting downpour in last three days has thrown normal life out of gear. The poor and unattended sewage system of the Brahmapur Municipal Corporation (BMC) failed to channelise the rainwater, which flew over the roads in most of the wards, particularly in the low-lying areas.
Most parts of the city reeled under water logging. Posh areas like Gandhinagar, Neelachal Nagar, Neelakantha Nagar, Gajapati Nagar, Jayaprakash Nagar, Bank Colony, Park Street, Big Bazar, Aska Road, Tulasinagar and several other areas suffered the most. Notably, the rented office of the local MP in Gandhinagar 3rd line Extension was inundated in muddy water. The BMC is yet to lay a concrete road or put in place a proper sewage system in the area.
Though after the rain stopped on Tuesday and water started gradually receding, but the waste and mud dumped by it on the roads caused a great deal of inconvenience besides producing bad and unbearable stench in the area. The BMC seems to have paid deaf ears to the complaints of the inhabitants of the locality after the rains.
Many a time, it is observed that, the sweepers at the time of cleaning the roads throw the garbage into the drain. On the other hand, the personnel who clean the drain do the same superfluously and whatever solid waste and garbage they remove from the drain, they dump the same on the bank of the drain. The stagnation of solid wastes and garbage on the roads and inside the drains gives rise to a breeding ground for mosquitoes, flies, and myriad varieties of deadly insects, making the atmosphere polluted and unhygienic.
According to sources, Brahmapur has around 114 km pucca and 255 km of kutcha drains. The BMC has been spending more than Rs 1 crore every year for their renovation and repairing, but no improvement as such is found in practice. Repeated demands of the denizens for construction of new concrete drains and renovation of the existing drains remain unheeded by the BMC and the elected representatives.
Ironically, Ganjam district is currently represented by four Ministers, including the Chief Minister, who hardly pay any attention to the problems of the residents, said a senior citizen. In the mean time, two more suspected dengue patients reportedly have been admitted into the local MKCG Medical College and Hospital on Monday last.