GUWAHATI: Even as Guwahati struggles with severe waterlogging every monsoon, the state government’s Drainage Master Plan remains far from effective. The issue? Lack of coordination among departments, which has led to repeated mistakes and delays in crucial drainage projects.
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During a press conference, Assam Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah admitted that while a Drainage Master Plan is in place, poor coordination among various departments has led to inefficiencies in execution.
"We already have a Drainage Master Plan, but the problem is that there is no coordination among the departments," said the minister.
The minister pointed out specific problem areas in the city, including Rukminigaon and Beltola, where drainage construction is ongoing. However, these areas had already undergone drainage work earlier, only for authorities to realise that the drains were built with faulty gradients, making them ineffective in directing water flow.
"If you look at Rukminigaon and Beltola, drainage construction is currently ongoing. But the fact is, these drains were built earlier as well. The problem is, they had to be reconstructed because the lower gradient was missing," he explained.
According to him, the middle portion of the drainage system is elevated, making it impossible for water to flow naturally to the other end, causing waterlogging.
"The middle part of the drain is higher than the rest, which means water gets trapped instead of flowing out. We are now working to fix the gradients as soon as possible," Malla Baruah added.
