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| A waterlogged street in Cuttack after heavy rain triggered by cyclone Hudhud hit the city on Sunday. Picture by Badrika Nath Das |
Cuttack, Oct. 12: Life in the city was partially hit by heavy rain triggered by the cyclone Hudhud that hit south Odisha and coastal Andhra Pradesh today.
In spite of preventive measures by Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC), several localities were waterlogged following rain that lashed the city.
Residents of several low-lying areas, including new Khatbin Sahi, Pension Lane, Mehendipir, Patpole, Rausapatna, Badambadi, Arunodaya Nagar, Sidheswar Sahi and Pithapur, faced problems because of the rain.
The worst affected were the low-lying localities of Sikharpur and Jagatpur.
“The city witnessed heavy downpour for an hour and most of the low-lying areas were waterlogged. This shows how unprepared the civic body is in dealing with such situations,” said Sachidananda Behera, a resident of Seikh Bazar.
Behera said commuters also faced problems because of the inundation of major streets in Meria Bazar, Kesharpur, Friends Colony, Seminary Chhak, Jhola Sahi, Bangali Sahi and Nandi Sahi.
Earlier, keeping in view the heavy rainfall prediction by the regional meteorological department, CMC officials had carried out a de-siltation drive of major drainage channels to ensure fast clearance of rainwater.
The drive was carried out over three days and the silt excavated from the drains was immediately cleared instead of being dumped on the roads.
CMC officials, on the other hand, claimed that preventive measures taken had helped in the speedy discharge of accumulated water from several localities today.
“As the city had witnessed heavy rainfall within a short time, there was water logging in several low-lying areas today. We have already deployed over 100 high-power motor pumps and we hope that things will improve later in the evening,” said CMC commissioner Gyana Das.
Das said a special squad was already trying its best to clear blockages.
“We have kept another 100 motor pumps on standby while the situation is being closely monitored. Appropriate measures are being taken to clear accumulated water, particularly at Khannagar and Matrubhawan sluice gates,” he said.