Bhubaneswar, Jan. 20: Areas along the Daya West Canal have emerged as another sought-after pocket for real estate development, but infrastructure and basic amenities elude these localities.

The canal used to supply water for paddy cultivation in the areas on the city outskirts. But with urbanisation, the cultivation activities stopped and the canal system became redundant.

In 2010, the state government decided to develop roads on both the sides of the canal from Palasuni to Garage Square, so that it can serve both as a road link and a water channel.

When the plan was made public, selling of plots again went up manifold. Thereafter when the road construction started, new high-rise structures started emerging from the banks.

Local resident and urban management practitioner Piyush Ranjan Rout said: “Earlier, areas near the Daya West Canal were not included in the comprehensive development plan of the city. While the micro-level zonal development plan has been implemented in many parts of Bhubaneswar, the canal banks are not included even in the primary planning process.”

Realtors have developed plots and people have purchased those. But without any initiative from the development and civic authorities, now there is no land available for schools, hospitals, police station and other amenities and institutions. “Once the saturation level is reached, only then will the development authority rise from its deep slumber,” Rout said.

Newly elected councillor from Laxmisagar, Rajalaxmi Nayak, said: “The canal’s left bank is not included in the sewerage network plan, which is under progress in the city. If the real estate development goes on at its present rate and the required infrastructure is fulfilled after a decade, there will definitely be plan related problems cropping up in each locality.”

Project engineer of the Odisha Water Supply and Sewerage Board B.K. Parida said: “The sewerage project, currently under progress, is done according to a survey carried out by IIT, Kharagpur and its projection was till 2005. The newer areas can be included later as the population status up to 2030 is included in the engineering planning. Though at present, the city population is below 10 lakh, the sewerage network can take the burden of a population size of 22 lakh.”

A senior engineer of the works department, requesting anonymity, said: “The development authority and the civic body should give permission to buildings according to the amenities available in the locality. They should also take up urban planning in the new areas where the real estate development has already reached a certain level.”

Enforcement officer of the Bhubaneswar Development Authority Debaprasad Dash said: “The vigilance squad of our planning division is identifying illegal structures and those blocking or diverting natural drainage channels in the area. As the area was traditionally a low-lying zone, blocking of the channels could also cause flooding. With inputs from the planning wing, we will take appropriate action to demolish illegal structures.”

Local resident S. Nirmal said: “We have been staying in a colony on the left bank of the Daya West Canal for almost a decade, but the basic infrastructure development such as road, drain, sewerage is yet to come. During monsoon, most of the private colonies get waterlogged, but the administration is yet to take any step.”

Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena said: “We have already announced that the development of the city outskirts will be our focus. With the real estate development picking up in the new residential pockets, the infrastructure support will be accelerated for a balanced development.”