A bus on an inundated road on Wednesday. Picture by UB Photos

March 23: Three days of intermittent showers, the first of the season, were all it took to expose the hollowness of Dispur?s claim that it was working towards solving the city?s perennial water-logging problem for good.

Though rain gave Guwahatians a respite from the heat and dust, several areas were waterlogged because of clogged drains. Cynical residents said the state of affairs even before the monsoon had set in was an indication of what lay ahead.

The busy AT Road and portions of Lakhtokia, Birubari, Lachit Nagar, Kumarpara and Nabin Nagar came under water after the burst of showers.

The Regional Meteorological Centre has predicted more rain in the next 48 hours. Its director M. Mahapatra said there was a low pressure over the Gangetic Bay of Bengal area, which might bring more rain to Guwahati and the rest of the region.

The ongoing desiltation drive drew flak, too, with residents accusing the authorities of not executing the project in a scientific manner.

?Silt and garbage are being dumped on the roadside and these flow back to the drains and the river along with rainwater. The entire exercise is a farce,? Nilamoni Bhuyan of Lachit Nagar said.

Sensing the resentment of residents, former minister and East Guwahati MLA Pankoj Bora, deputy commissioner of Kamrup metropolitan Samir Kumar Sinha and several other officials this morning walked along the Bharolu river and reviewed the progress in execution of the desiltation drive.

The deputy commissioner later held an emergency meeting with the mayor and commissioner of the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC), engineers of the GMC, water resource department and magistrates to discuss as to how to carry out the desiltation drive of the Bharolu, Morabharolu and Bahini rivers and drains on a war-footing.

An official present in the meeting said Sinha categorically told all the departments to launch a co-ordinated approach to solve the artificial flood problem in the city.

?The desiltation drive must be carried out effectively so that the Bharolu can take the maximum load of rainwater before flushing these out to the Brahmaputra. Nothing is impossible if the co-ordinated and sincere efforts are initiated,? the deputy commissioner said.

Sinha also entrusted the public works department (PWD) to execute the Rs 1.25-crore desilting project of the city drains. The project has been divided into two categories ? desilting of the side drains and the inner drains of the GMC area. Today?s meeting asked the 12 magistrates deputed in 12 different zones to hold meetings of citizens to apprise them of the ongoing desiltation scheme.

?The citizens must know what is going on to maintain transparency and effective implementation of the project,? Sinha said.