Of rains & drains

With the first showers of the monsoon already on, the residents of several localities of Guwahati have also had the first round of water-logging and artificial floods. Everyone is aware that cleaning and desilting of the 300-plus drains under the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC), the first round of which should have been ideally carried out immediately after Rongali Bihu, actually took off only after the first heavy shower had already put the authorities to shame. Incidentally, not all drains in Guwahati city are under the jurisdiction and responsibility of the GMC. There are also drains under the responsibility of various other government departments and agencies, which include Water Resources, NF Railway, CPWD, PWD, Oil India Ltd, NHAI, BSNL, GMDA and the Army. Guwahati being a kind of a trough which is deep in the middle portion, all the water coming down from the surrounding hills definitely cannot naturally be sent out to the Brahmaputra. Moreover, the drainage system of the city has continued to remain unscientific, and this is despite the presence of several rivers and streams which criss-cross Guwahati. Unfortunately, academic or research institutions like Assam Engineering College and IIT Guwahati have failed to contribute positively towards making Guwahati's drains flowing smoothly. The citizens are also to be blamed. If a national award is instituted for the most irresponsible citizens, the people of Guwahati who dump their garbage in drains and rivers will bag that award every year. The government, Guwahati Development Department, GMDA, GMC, Forest & Environment Department, Soil Conservation Department, Water Resource Department and ASDMA etc must also share the blame. These agencies have failed in their respective responsibilities for making Guwahati a liveable city. The encroachers of wetlands and hills in and around Guwahati are yet another category of culprits. It is for these encroachers, patronized by a section of politicians, that the taxpayers have to suffer. Unscrupulous politicians and a section of corrupt officers on the other hand are to be blamed for allotting people in Deepor Beel, Silsako Beel, Bondajan and several other wetlands that are important flood-cushions for Guwahati.