Ghaziabad: Sewage backflow, waterlogging in Indirapuram highrises
Ghaziabad areas such as Indirapuram and Kaushambi suffered from waterlogging and sewage backflow after heavy rain on Thursday morning
The prime residential locality of Indirapuram suffered from waterlogging and sewage backflow following the heavy rain on Thursday morning. A number of highrises had waterlogging in basements and common areas apart from knee-deep water in internal lanes till late Thursday afternoon.
“This is the worst waterlogging I have seen in the past several years. The drains were choked and traffic went haywire. Waterlogging persisted on internal and major roads till Thursday afternoon,” said Mohan Sangwan, a Shakti Khand resident.
“Our highrise’s basement areas on minus 2 and 3 levels were filled with water and knee-deep water persisted outside the highrise too. Office goers faced problems taking out their vehicles and many broke down in the water. The sewage backflow is a recurrent issue and the condition is worsened by the garbage littered in drains by local vendors,” said Ravindra Saini from Jaipuria Sunrise, Indirapuram.
Residents from Amrapali Village, another highrise with nearly 1,000 flats, suffered the same problem on Thursday morning.
“Our common areas and basements are filled with water. The problem takes place mostly due to sewage choking up the pipes. We have been using motor pumps to draw out water and have been getting the sewers cleaned for on our own for the past five days. We have complained to the Ghaziabad development authority (GDA) but the issues persist,” said Rakesh Kumar, a resident.
The GDA, which maintains Indirapuram, said its staff worked the whole day to clear up water on major internal roads. “The work is still underway. We have deployed three pumps to jet out water to the drains. Waterlogging persisted as the main pumping station that pumps sewage to the STP did not function due to power failure. This led to sewage backflow and aided waterlogging,” said Chakresh Jain, executive engineer, GDA.
Apart from Indirapuram, low-lying Kaushambi too faced major waterlogging.
“The parking areas of at least six highrises were waterlogged and residents were late to work or had to take the day off altogether. The area is low-lying and water receded only after 2-3 hours. There is a problem because of the Sahibabad drain. When the water level in that drain increases, Kaushambi’s outlet to the drain gets filled with water, resulting in backflow,” said VK Mittal, president, Kaushambi Apartment Residents’ Welfare Association.
The situation was the same in Shalimar Garden, Lajpat Nagar and other trans-Hindon and cis-Hindon areas. Waterlogging also choked the drains at Gaushala underpass.
“I personally conducted an inspection and have ordered for pumps to be deployed in waterlogged areas. We have also decided to provide two pumps and sufficient diesel in all five city zones. A meeting of all engineers is called to discuss the issue and resolve the problem,” said CP Singh, municipal commissioner.