The shocking death of six-year-old Athidhi, who got washed away in a storm water drain in Visakhapatnam, has brought to the fore the lurking danger of the city’s open drains poses to the common man.
Most drains in the city covered with concrete slabs are encroached upon and they serve as parking lots for commercial establishments. For instance, the swanky showrooms on Bandar Road, Moghalrajpuram, Tikkle Road and Pinnamaneni Polyclinic Road have encroached the drains. Despite being covered with concrete slabs, they still pose threat to the pedestrians.
The situation is even worse at Jammi Chettu junction where water overflows on both sides of the road from the drain wherever it rains. Pedestrians are forced to wade through knee-deep water and it is impossible for them to notice a drain as the entire road gets submerged, says K. Subbarayulu, a private employee from Eluru Road.
As the city is all set to witness rapid development after the foundation stone-laying ceremony in Amaravati, it is time the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) wakes up from slumber and initiate effective measures for safety of pedestrians, says the Tax Payers Association secretary M.V. Anjaneyulu.
In Athidhi case, search teams faced hardships in tracing the girl as almost a 3-km stretch of the storm water drain from the spot was covered with concrete and there was not a single manhole or opening with grills to facilitate rescue operation.
He says encroachment of drains by a few shops obstructs free flow of water in drains in the locality too. A short spell of rain is enough to reduce the Pinnamaneni Polyclinic Road to a cess pool, unleashing miseries to the residents and motorists. This busy stretch is dotted with residential colonies, educational institutes and commercial establishments. Rainwater from Mogalrajpuram Hills and neighbouring areas flows down inundating this area.
According to the VMC officials, the city has small, medium and major drains covering 940 km. The Central government has sanctioned funds for construction of drains and the works would begin shortly. “Using earthmover, we are trying to remove encroachments on drains to ensure free flow of rain water,” VMC Superintending Engineer-I P. Adiseshu said, adding that efforts were on to cover the uncovered manholes.
