kolkata: In a bid to implement a proper drainage plan that will seek to do away with the waterlogging issue in the city once and for all, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) may seek funds from the Centre for its implementation.
The civic body’s drainage department had been working on a master plan that seeks to deal with waterlogging in areas that have become infamous for waterlogging over the years. Most of these areas are identified in the northern, central, and eastern parts of the city, including areas like Thanthania, MG Road, Kidderpore, Behala, Mukundapur and Kasba among others.
The plan is to implement a system that will not only give out warnings in sync with the weather forecast but also intimate the civic body of the areas that may witness waterlogging in case of heavy rainfall.
This will also work as a disaster management system since people may need to be evacuated from areas where old and dilapidated buildings marked by the KIMC are located.
These buildings pose a risk of collapse resulting from heavy rainfall.
The estimate for implementing such a plan will cost about Rs 500 crore, which will be asked from the Centre. However, concerned authorities are sceptical about the actions of the Centre as it has previously refused to fund the Ghatal Master Plan for which Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had been requesting the Centre for a long time now.