Civic body to come up with underground drainage system

Kolkata: As part of its sustained effort to reduce the waterlogging issue ahead of monsoon, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is coming up with an underground drainage system at ward 111, which includes Garia, Brahmapur, Kamdahari and Boral areas.

It is being made under the Kolkata Environment Infrastructure Improvement Project (KEIIP). It is scheduled to be completed by 2023.

The people of these areas suffer due to water-logging every year. The residents of one of the areas, Chhota Sardar Para had often complained of the rainwater remaining for six to seven months.

A resident of the area, Minati Kha, 45, said: "Every year, dirty water used to enter the living room space, kitchen and bathroom of the house. These spaces would become inaccessible. For bathroom usage, men used to go to the nearby public washroom while women had to ask their better fortunate neighbors to accommodate them."The scheduled date for the project's completion is 2023. According to the local councillor Sandip Das, the route of the drainage system will be from Ward 111 to Sheetla Mandir Pumping station under Ward number 113 and the outflow will be to Rania Canal. To provide some relief to people until the date of completion, Das said: "We are installing around 23 pumps . We are doing this proactively, before the onset of the rainy season. Wherever the water is being logged, this initiative will ensure that stagnant water passes through these pumps faster," adding, "We are desilting the area's drain—on a regular or weekly basis."