The Deccan Chronicle 04.10.2010
Master plan goes down the drain?Oct. 3: After spending Rs 640 crore for the remodelling of storm water drains in the city, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has prepared a “master plan” which involves spending a further Rs 952 crore on the same.
BBMP has sent the detailed project report (DPR) to the government for approval, but civic experts are sceptical about whether it will help stem the flooding in the city during the monsoon season or whether it will just be more water down the drain.
Their concern is justified as they feel that BBMP has successfully prevented flooding only at a handful of places though it has spent a whopping Rs 640 crore under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)on remodelling the drains.
The major aim of the master plan is to clear obstructions in storm water drains by shifting water and sewerage supply lines currently running inside the storm water drains. BBMP claims that four major valleys — Koramangala, Hebbal, Challaghatta and Vrishabhavati — which carry storm water drains were remodelled at a cost of more than Rs 400 crore.
According to sources in BBMP, apart from encroachments by people who have constructed buildings over the storm water drains, the resultant debris in the drains are causing them to choke across the city.The storm water drain network runs for about 842 km. BBMP proposes to acquire 2,000 acres of land along the drains to shift utilities and create service roads which will be used for desilting the drains and to prevent encroachments, the sources said.
Building and strengthening retaining walls will continue and areas not already covered will be worked on, the sources said.
