K’taka CM Basavaraj Bommai visited the rain-affected areas in north Bengaluru on Tuesday and took civic authorities to task for failing to prevent the massive waterlogging.
The unprecedented heavy rain across Bengaluru in the last five days has once again exposed the nexus between builders, politicians and bureaucrats. The flood-like situation in posh areas and tech parks have unnerved the common people and they are now demanding answers from the people in power.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has visited the rain-affected areas in north Bengaluru on Tuesday and took civic authorities to task for failing to prevent the massive waterlogging. He has also assured the people and corporates of all help and quick action to ensure that similar things will not repeat in future.
Like the rest of Karnataka, Bengaluru has also received excess rainfall this monsoon. The heaviest rain in the last week has affected the lives of people across the city leading to serious concerns about the future of newly-developed areas that bore the brunt of rain fury.
The Manyatha Tech Park, a sprawling private commercial-cum-residential area is home to some top IT and IT-enabled companies including IBM. The entire area has been flooded and the IBM building has been affected the most.
This tech park is located next to Nagawara lake on Outer Ring Road. Before this monstrosity came up 20 years ago, the land was a part of the lake feeders. Encroachment and unscientific construction have led to today’s terrifying situation feel experts.
“Most of the construction has been done on stormwater drains causing this deluge. It is certainly a crime enabled by the local civic authorities. If the same situation repeats, next year, we will have to move out of this area. Fortunately, we are still following work from home model. That saved us from a disaster”, said a senior executive at a top US-based IT company on condition of anonymity.
Many others in tech park echoed similar sentiments, holding the government responsible for their misery.
A few kilometres away from Manyatha, one of India’s premier research institutes Jawahar Lal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) is still under knee-deep water throwing everything out of gear. The campus spread over 24 acres was inundated due to heavy rain. Bommai visited the campus and held a meeting with JNCASR Chairman Bharat Ratna Professor CNR Rao. According to locals, the institute has been built on a stormwater drain and water beds.
A few kilometres ahead, one of the oldest and bigger residential apartments Kendriya Vihar at Yelahanka has also borne the brunt of the rain. The entire apartment was under the water and the authorities had to use boats to rescue stranded residents. Even ration was distributed using boats. The entire residential complex has been built on the edges of sprawling Yelahanka lake over 20 years ago.
Local BJP MLA SR Vishwanath admitted that parts of the apartment has been built on stormwater drains and blockage of them has caused this terrible situation.
The situation is the same in hundreds of other small and big residential areas in north Bengaluru. Over the last 20 odd years, lakhs of flats and houses have come up in this area closer to Kempe Gowda International Airport. Till the early 1990s, most of the area was agricultural land and it could not survive the onslaught of big commerce.
The State government and the BBMP in collusion with land sharks have converted once green area into concrete jungle violating most laws.
“Bengaluru is still a city of lakes. All the tanks are interconnected through Raja Kaluves (an ancient system of linking of water bodies). These canals ensure the smooth flow of excess water from one tank or lake to another before draining into rivers. Most of these and stormwater drains have been encroached on by greedy builders. That’s why we are in a terrible situation today”, said Usha Bharatadri, a resident of Kendriya Vihar.
Speaking to the media, Bommai said that his priority is to rescue and cleanup operations. “Rain has just taken a break or stopped. Many areas are still under the water. We will first focus on draining the water out. Later, we will try to find out what caused this kind of flood and we will also come out with a permanent solution. There is no question of sparing anyone involved,” he said.
He warned the encroachers that the government will come down heavily on them. But, past experiences prove that it is easier said than done. Every time the rain wreaks havoc, the government issues the same warning and forgets it once the sun shines.
Bengaluru was once a lake city. Occasional heavy rains turn it into a lake city. But no one wants to live in it.
