The arrival of monsoons means regular stagnation of rainwater in residential areas for several cities in India. Even a small shower leads to waterlogging in big cities like Mumbai. It disrupts the routines of people. The rainy season, which is traditionally supposed to bring a lot of joy and merriment to common people, becomes a source of apprehension and anxiety. This is because our civil engineers or city planners have overlooked the necessity of keeping the path of normal flow of water clear.
A popular Rajasthani proverb says that fire, water, snakes and rulers seldom compromise with their tendencies. Water tends to flow towards a lower plane. Our ancestors knew this and were prepared. They tackled flooding with two strategies: either the surface run-off was stored in artificial water bodies for future use or the path of flow of water was kept unobstructed.
Take the case of Kota city of Rajasthan. Kota is widely known for the fabulous success of its coaching institutes in entrance examinations to top-ranking engineering and medical institutes of the country. Geographically, Kota is situated on the lowest part of the plateau of Hadouti. Whenever it rained on the upper part of the plateau, run-off would flow down, in accordance with gravity. Every now and then, this flow caused a flood-like situation in the lower region. Prince Dheerdeo of Bundi studied the problem and constructed 13 big tanks at different levels of the plateau.
Kota was then a part of the princely state of Bundi. These tanks were constructed in the path of the flow of rainwater. They not only curbed the force of water running towards lower regions but also played a vital role in increasing the groundwater level of the area. One of the most important uses of these tanks was that they became a prime source of water for the common folk.
But when the lust for land increased, most of these tanks were either encroached on or built over for different projects in the name of development. If one pond was taken over for the construction of a suburban railway station, another was filled up to build a bazaar. Ponds were also encroached to develop illegal colonies by the land mafia.
The density of population in Kota city grew several folds. Every now and then, flood-like situations affected residential areas. Technically, floods occur when the water level increases in rivers and that enters into nearby residential areas. But the type of “flood” that cities like Kota were facing was not because of rise in water level, but due to the flow of rainwater on its natural path. Later, a diversion channel was built to carry the run-off directly into river Chambal.
Mumbai also narrates the same tale. Few cities can boast of a natural diversity as rich as that of Mumbai. The city has several rivers or rivulets: Dahisar, Poisar, Oshiwara and Meethi. Instead of channels that carry excess rainwater, they are now stinking, garbage-lined, slime-filled sewers. Generations of Mumbaikars don’t even know them as rivers; all they see is smelly nullahs that flood during the monsoon. The natural path of flow of these rivers is overtaken by the residential or commercial buildings and this is the reason that even a little extra influx of water creates a flood-like situation in several parts of Mumbai. A few years ago, Chennai too faced a flood due to the same reason.
One can find similar situations in almost every part of the country. We revere rivers by giving them the epithet of “Mother”. But we never hesitate in throwing dirt and filth in them. Our ancestors were wise enough to understand the importance of water bodies in a residential area and to realise the necessity of keeping the path of natural water flow free from all encroachments. Ironically, to stay in the blind race of modern development, our city planners overlooked this wisdom and such carelessness converted the joy of the monsoon into a curse for most cities. Will our policymakers pay a little attention towards the issue?
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