Cuttack, Aug. 5: Various low-lying areas of Sikharpur are suffering from acute waterlogging this monsoon allegedly because of lack of measures initiated by the Cuttack Municipal Corporation for smooth passage of wastewater.

The situation is the worst at Nadikula Sahi where 17 families remain trapped inside their homes for days together whenever there is a downpour.

Lack of a proper drainage system is blamed for the situation as accumulated rain and wastewater take more than a week to subside from these areas, which fall in ward No. 42 of the civic body.

“We have been facing waterlogging problems in our locality for the past nine years. The civic authorities have not taken any step to improve the drainage system here despite repeated complaints,” said Naina Rout, 45, a local resident.

Another local resident said wastewater from Sikharpur Upper Sahi, Tala Sahi and the National Highway 5 was made to pass through a pit and was subsequently released directly into Mahanadi river through motor pumps.

Though the local residents tried to raise the height of these areas, it has failed to resolve the waterlogging issue here. There is a problem in the discharge of wastewater in the area because of a problem of the natural slope there.

At present, two motors of 14-horsepower capacity and three motors of five-horsepower capacity are used to pump out the accumulated water from the pit to the river.

Earlier, bulk of the wastewater used to be diverted through a major surface drain into the main storm water channel No. 2 via Mahanadi Vihar.

“The surface drain has collapsed some nine years ago. But the civic authorities have not taken any step to rebuild it,” said Jyoti Prakash Mohapatra, 44, another local resident.

Local councillor Pradyumna Pradhan said that of the seven major surface drains in the area, two belonged to the National Highways Authority of India, while another belonged to the railways.

“The drain that belongs to the National Highways Authority of India has not been cleaned for long. This is creating problems in the discharge of the wastewater from the locality. The municipal corporation has already spent about Rs 6.40 lakh for desilting all the drains that fall under its jurisdiction,” said Pradhan.

He also said though there was a proposal to install three motors of 10-horsepower capacity, instead of the existing five-horsepower motors, to discharge wastewater from Nadikula Sahi, it has not yet been executed.