The Kolkata Municipal Corporation says it is ready to tackle the monsoon, like every year, in the city. Kolkata is prone to flooding and waterlogging given its geographic location and the city’s structural growth.
After the regime change from TMC to BJP, many offices in KMC are either vacant or awaiting further instructions.
KMC commissioner Smita Pandey says Kolkata's monsoons pose a big challenge.
“There are two main areas that are our primary concern. Central, north Kolkata, near Thanthaniya and the VIP Road, and the airport area. These areas are prone to waterlogging. North Kolkata is the oldest part of the city and is overburdened with outdated drainage systems as it is.”
“The newest campaign launched by KMC is ‘Swachhta Se Swagat’. This drive has been implemented throughout the city. I was very pleased to see the area around Ashutosh College free of garbage,” added Pandey.
Kolkata’s sewer and drainage networks rely on a network of underground heritage brick sewers and a massive system of outfall canals that channel wastewater away from the Hooghly River eastward to the East Kolkata Wetlands and the Kulti-Bidyadhari River.
The core city of Kolkata had its underground drainage system introduced between 1859 and 1875 as a combined sewerage system before the introduction of underground piped water supply from surface water sources.
Pandey says KMC is ready with glove machines and hydro-jetters to tackle waterlogging.
A glove propulsion machine is an electric drain cleaning machine (or plumbing snake) that comes bundled with heavy-duty safety gloves to protect hands from moving cables, raw sludge, and debris while clearing clogged drains. Hydro-jetters use high-pressure water to clear blockages and propel a specialised nozzle through pipes.
“Currently, along with Thanthaniya, our concern is Harish Mukherjee Road. We have made plans of action for the area and will try to keep the waterlogging to a minimum,” said Pandey.
Kolkata received very heavy rainfall in 2025, most notably during an extreme weather event on September 22-23, when the city was battered by up to 332mm of rain in a few hours. This single deluge brought nearly 20% of the city’s annual rainfall (1,345.5 mm) overnight, ranking as the third-highest September rainfall the region has seen since 1978.
The drainage long link channels are being maintained and repaired as and when needed, Pandey informed.
“The channels act as an integral part of the drainage for the city. We have been maintaining the channels with proper techniques. The channels are egg-shaped. This makes them harder to maintain, but we are doing our best,” said Pandey.