Bengaluru floods because of ’maladministration of Congress govt’: Karnataka CM
- CM Bommai said his government has taken all it up as a challenge to restore Bengaluru and make sure that such things don't recur in the future
As Bengaluru is flooded due to incessant rainfall for the past two days, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai blamed the previous Congress governments' 'maladministration' for the deluge.
CM Bommai said his government has taken all it up as a challenge to restore Bengaluru and make sure that such things don't recur in the future.
He said all the officers, engineers, and workers and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams are working 24/7. "We have cleared lots of encroachments and we will continue to clear them. We are installing sluice gates to the tanks so that they can be managed better. I have instructed officials to ensure that the control room works 24/7. We have started dewatering in most of the areas. Other than one or two areas almost all areas have been dewatered".
Speaking to media, the Karnataka chief minister said a picture is being portrayed that the entire city is facing difficulties, which is not the case. "Basically the issue lies in two zones, particularly the Mahadevapura zone for reasons such as the presence of 69 tanks in that small area and almost all of them have either breached or are overflowing, secondly, all establishments are in low lying areas, and the third is encroachments," he listed out.
He further blamed the "maladministration and unplanned administration" of the previous Congress government for the current misery. He said they (Congress) had given permissions for construction activities "right-left-centre" in the lake areas, on the tank bunds and buffer zones. They had never thought of maintaining the lakes.
"Now I have taken it up as a challenge. I have given ₹1,500 crores for the development of stormwater drains, I have yesterday released ₹300 crore to remove all encroachments and do a pucca structure along the stormwater drains and for the infrastructure, so that there are no impediments and bottlenecks in the flow of water," CM Bommai added.
Observing that the T K Halli pump house in Malavalli taluk of Mandya which pumps Cauvery water to Bengaluru is affected due to overflowing Bheemeshwara River and water from the surrounding lakes, therefore, two pump houses were affected, flood water is being drained out, but it will take two days to drain out the water and to resume work in full capacity.
Around 8,000 bore wells under the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) and 4,000 under Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will be activated and they would supply water during the disruption in Cauvery water supply to areas, Bommai revealed.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Karnataka is among the regions that have received maximum rainfall this year. It has seen 34% more rainfall in the past three months than what it usually receives this time of the year.
The two zones that make up the city, Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural, have seen 141% and 114% excess rainfall respectively. On Monday night, 131.6 millimeters (5.2 inches) of rain was recorded, making it the wettest September day in the last eight years.
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
Business NewsNewsIndiaBengaluru floods because of ’maladministration of Congress govt’: Karnataka CM
First Published:6 Sep 2022, 12:31 PM IST
- Top Gainers
- Top Losers
- 52 Week High