Bengaluru: Cloud burst expose civic bodies

The cloud burst over the city from the past one week and more so on Sunday 04 September has not just rattled the daily life but literally exposed the preparedness of the civic bodies at such junctures.

East gets marooned: No doubt, the Sunday rains dubbed to be only such in the past 94 years has brought the whole of East Bengaluru under waters. If the main roads at Bellanduru, Maratahalli, Sarjapur, HSR Layout leading to the Electronic city have transformed into streams the residential layouts look like lakes.

Villas become swimming pools: The pathetic conditions of those who shelved money like water to build luxury villas are made to weep as the residential units wore a sight of open swimming pools as long as you can see. These residents' have also been compelled to flee from their own houses, for owning which most of them had to drench their lifetime earnings.

Normal life goes haywire: However, the lives of all those migrant labourers who came from all across the state and country has become miserable as their dwellings in tiny sheds have been washed away.

IT companies face the heat: The globally acclaimed IT companies which set up their shops have also been made to face the brunt of incessant rains lashing the city ever since the rainy season started and much before due to the unseasonal and cyclone related rains.

In boats to offices: These days the social networking sites are abuzz with rain related woes being faced by the Bengalureans and more so by all those who migrated to the Silicon city pursuing green pastures. Some videos showing employees managing to reach work places in mini boats are no exaggeration.

Loss of hundreds of crores: According to the sources the damage to the IT companies in the city has been estimated to hundreds of crores. This estimate is apart from the damage to the vehicles owned by the employees.

Blame game continues: After the two major civic bodies Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike(BBMP) and Bengaluru Development Authority(BDA) proving unworthy of their names, those in the ruling party have started the blame game. The Ministers and Chief Minister are reiterating charges like the previous governments responsible for the present sorry state of affairs. But in the melee they are forgetting to address as what their responsibilities need to be?

Lakes become layouts: The founders of Bengaluru had planned the city in such way abounded by hundreds of lakes and green cover all around. An noteworthy factor worthwhile mentioning here is that the old or original city continues to remain unperturbed irrespective of heavy rains. But the whole of extended, expanded, illegally, unplanned and unscientifically continues to face the heat during rainy days.

Rain paths encroached: The city planners also had planned these lakes in such a meticulous manner that the lakes used to pass on the overflowing water to the next nearby lake. But when illegal and Revenue settlements started mushrooming up on all eight directions of the city, both civic agencies remained mute spectators!

Water sources leased to Real Estate Mafia: The AT Ramaswamy committee constituted by the state government to probe the illegal occupancy of government lands had estimated that an area to the extent of 1,848 acres of lake beds have been leased out to the real estate mafia only in the Bengaluru Urban district!

BDA forms layouts in lakes: As if such heroic feats weren't enough the Bengaluru Development Authority(BDA) also leaped multiple times by forming layouts in the water bodies itself. Added to these circumstances, many people who don't bother to adhering to rules, norms have built structures encroaching the wide drainages themselves.

Vicious nexus: The vicious nexus between the builders, corporators, BBMP officials and politicians belonging to all parties is the crux of the problem showing its ugly face every now and then. The solution is like the piquant query of who is going to bell the cat?

-Manohar Yadavatti