Blocked Drain Inundates City Locality With Filthy Water

Srinagar: Due to blockade of drainage system at Ziyarat Madin sahib in Hawal Srinagar, stench and garbage spilling all over the road and into the premises of houses have created health problems for residents while the concerned department is doing nothing to give a respite to the people.

Residents said that it has become difficult for them to spend time even inside the houses as “The foul smell emanating from the drain has made our lives hell. Even children are not able to concentrate on their studies’’.

According to the locals, the presence of high-tension lines over the drain possesses another threat to their lives in the area. The wires according to them are attached with the iron electric poles which often lead to electric shocks.

‘’The choked drain and high-tension wire can cause a major tragedy in the area,” the residents said.

The locals said that filth and dirty water are all over on the link road and in the premises of the houses. “This is because of the faulty drainage system that the area has. The water from the drain has spilled all over the road and it has now become impossible to even walk on it,” said locals.

“The drain has become a den for dogs and rats. Often dead dogs and birds are spotted in the drain. It becomes difficult to breath near the drain,” said Umar Ahmad, a shopkeeper near Ziyarat Madin sahib.

‘’We have many times requested the concerned authorities to undertake cleaning of the drains, however no action has been taken so far,” he added.

The state government had taken hundreds of drainage schemes in Kashmir over the years. Most of them could not be completed due to “lack of funds and coordination” between various departments.

“The Roads and Buildings department has been constructing roads in various areas without ensuring drainage system. The restoration of drainage system and road macadamization should have been done simultaneously,” one of the local said.

However, the officials of SMC and City Drainage said that this drain does not come under their domain.

The UEED Superintendent Engineer said that this is not our project; it is a part of NBCC’s sewerage line whose sewerage filtration plant is inactive at Noorbagh

“NBCC team has been directed to inspect the spot so that further action can be taken to repair the drain.

Project engineer NBCC Suhail Ahmad said that this drain is already blocked however the industrial units in the area are using this drain illegally.

Locals have requested concerned officials to look into the matter at an earliest site, so that locals may not suffer any more.