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Monsoon Mess: Panchkula caving under encroachments, poor drainage
Panchkula’s low-lying areas were flooded after heavy rains last week as encroachments blocked natural drains
Unchecked encroachments on nullahs, river beds and an inadequate drainage system, along with swollen Ghaggar saw the city left inundated after the latest spell of incessant rainfall.
As per the district officials, Panchkula recorded 650 mm rainfall over a period of three days. The same left behind eroded banks, washed-away hutments, landslide rubble, damaged roads and bridges.
Three people lost their lives, including a seven-year-old boy and five-year-old girl who were killed after a landslide in Pinjore.
Among the worst-affected areas were Sectors 19 and 15, Industrial Area, Buddanpur, Rajiv Colony, Indira Colony, Abheypur, Herbal Park, Sector 26, Amravati Enclave and other trans-Ghaggar sectors. The district administration had to evacuate people from low-lying areas, with around 900 people being shifted to relief camps at the Apple Market and White House Pinjore and Saini Hall in Surajpur.
Officials attributed the waterlogging in the Panchkula city to the potholes, backsliding storm water system owing to the swollen Ghaggar, the unclean and resultantly clogged road gullies. Making matters worse was the damage sustained to the circular brick track that drains the water.
Highlighting the fact that the residents are left to face the brunt every monsoon, Usha Rani, MC councillor from Ward number 7, said, “The residents of Indira Colony and Rajiv Colony are suffering owing to the blame game and jurisdiction issue. No development works are taking place and rainwater enters houses after each heavy shower.”
Geographically, the level difference between Old Panchkula and Amartex Chowk (Industrial Area Phase 1 and 2 near Sector 15) is more than 40 ft. The Sector-15 end being on the lower side draws the entire flow of water. Rainwater from Old Panchkula moves towards Sectors 5-6, 8-9, 16-17 before moving towards the Industrial Area.
Notably, the Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) had provided storm water pipes to Sectors 8, 9, 10, 15, 16 to drain the water towards Amartex Chowk and finally into a nullah at the Industrial Area Phase I opposite the Parsuram Bhawan in 12A.
There are, however, those suggesting that more concrete steps are required to tackle the problem. A senior official of the Haryana town and country planning department, not wishing to be named, said the administration ends up spending their resources more on disaster management instead of focusing on disaster preparedness.
“Only training is carried out in the name of preparedness and no concrete steps are taken,” the official added.
Others, meanwhile, highlight the unbridled growth that the city has undergone when assessing the problem.
Rajpal Singh, a retired chief town planner from Haryana, “The population of the city has grown manifold and so has the concrete jungle. The same has come about without adequately developing supporting infrastructure,”
“The city’s drainage system is unable to take the load and thus gives in. The encroachments on the path for nullahs in rains, seasonal rivulets and rivers have been encroached which the authorities have failed to check. Strict action should be taken against the encroachers,” he added.
Case in point, Sector 19, which is located on the Punjab-Haryana border, was at one point divided by a seasonal nullah. But with builders capturing and occupying the nullah, the natural drainage of rainwater has been affected. Similarly, colonies have mushroomed in Sector 20, with as many as 110 being at lower than ground level, on the bank of Ghaggar.
Vivek Atray, former DC Panchkula, noted, “Planning should be done in the off season and not just before rainfall. Even a single unplanned construction will worsen the situation so there is a need to deal with encroachments sternly. The issue of waterflow being blocked from Sector 19 should also be resolved at the earliest
Speaking of the steps being taken to fix the shortcomings, meanwhile, Panchkula legislator Gian Chand Gupta said, “The nullah flowing alongside Rajiv Colony and Indira Colony will be cleaned and widened and encroachments on the nullah will be checked. A riverfront development for Ghaggar has also been prepared.”
“The bridges that were washed away will be strengthened and rebuilt, wherever there have been engineer faults that would be corrected,’ he said, adding that an inquiry is also being conducted into the collapse of the service lane to pinpoint the engineering defects.
