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Smart water mgmt system need of the hour

BATHINDA: The water drainage system in the city has been laid against the natural flow.

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Sukhmeet Bhasin
Tribune News Service
Bathinda, July 21

The water drainage system in the city has been laid against the natural flow. That’s why, it has always been a Herculean task for the Municipal Corporation of Bathinda (MCB) to drain out rainwater in the city.

Residents have become perturbed as due to the lack of decision-making, poor urban planning, total mismanagement, corruption and reckless construction, they are being forced to face the problem of waterlogging. On the other hand, experts claim that the problem can be resolved if proper a rainstorm water drainage system is laid with separate pipelines and the capacity of the sludge carrier and ponds are increased.

Moreover, if pits are made at all the points, which are more prone to water-logging, rainwater can immediately be pumped into the pits, thus reducing the water-logging problem to a great extent.

Even rain gardens are one such solution that is being promoted by town planners and conservationists in the West, which can be easily replicated in our buildings and independent homes.

A rain garden is merely a shallow depression filled with plants and flowers into which rainwater from roofs and driveways can flow. It is better than having stormwater drains as apart from being aesthetically appealing, it carries little risk of getting blocked.

KK Singla, a former senior engineer of the Water Resources Department, said, “Focus should be laid on streamlining the system, which does not require huge funds, but checking the vulnerable points in the existing system. No other solution is required or possible at this juncture.”

He said it was high time they strengthened the existing sludge carrier and it should not run full to avoid any breach and it could run round the clock. To avoid its running above the permissible discharge, its capacity must be increased or another pipe line or another sludge carrier was the need of the hour to avoid such incidents in the future as due to the expansion of the city, the load on the sludge carrier had increased manifold. Moreover, it was 30 years old.

Rakesh Narula, social activist and president of Bathinda Vikas Manch, said, “Waterlogging is a chronic problem and there is a need to open a disposal pit at all the water-logging-prone points so that rainwater can be drained immediately. Later, it should be shifted to rainwater drainage sewers. It can resolve the problem to a large extent.”

Prof NK Gosain, a city resident, said there was a need to introduce a smart water management system to the city and prepare a model of a sustainable drainage network for all forms of water, whether it’s piped water supply, rainwater, storm water, surface water or ground water. Rainwater must be preserved, rather it should be used for rainwater harvesting systems. Strict laws should be formed so that people did not throw garbage and plastic products into the sewerage, leading to its choking.

Akshu Bansal, a civil engineer, said slopes must be created on roads for proper drainage of rainwater. The drains should be cleaned regularly. If required, new structures like inlets, open channels and inear drainage channels should be created. The authorities must monitor the condition of drains on a regular basis.

(To be continued)

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