File picture of a waterlogged road in Cuttack

Cuttack, Dec. 5: The municipal corporation will shortly start using jetting machines to remove silt from main storm water channels and branch drains to tackle waterlogging after a heavy downpour.

The machines, equipped with super sucker system, will remove silt deposits to increase carrying capacity of the channels. The work, which will be done with technical assistance from the Odisha Water Supply and Sewerage Board, will be over by the end of next January.

“The jetting machines, which can be carried to the storm water channels, will ensure dredging of the entire course of main drains and branch drains,” executive engineer of the Cuttack Municipal Corporation Lalit Mohan Das told The Telegraph today.

A civic official said the decision was taken in pursuance of an Orissa High Court order following waterlogging in most parts of the city that left more than three lakh people trapped in homes and rendered over one lakh homeless for three days after incessant rain in October.

“A joint committee of engineers of the corporation and the board has been formed to approve tender estimate for the de-silt job with the machines. Expression of interests will be invited shortly after the approval is issued within a couple of days,” he said.

At present, the civic body engages contractors for various stretches of main drains and branch drains to remove the silt. Excavators are used in a few stretches, while work is manually carried out in the rest. During the course of adjudication of PILs on civic problems in Cuttack city, the High Court Bar had received complaints that stated: “For want of desiltation in the recent past, there was heavy water accumulation in all roads of Cuttack city up to knee deep causing total obstruction of traffic and immense difficulty for the inhabitants of the city to commute, more specifically, during office hours and while returning home.”

Acting on it, the division bench of Justice M.M. Das and Justice Indrajit Mahanty had issued an order on November 22. “We, therefore, direct that under the chairmanship of the chief engineer of the Japan International Co-operation Agency project, a committee will be constituted consisting of responsible engineers of the corporation. They are directed to float a tender inviting offers from competent agencies, who are prepared to de-silt the storm water channels (large drains) as well as other drains in the city mechanically (by using machineries). Such tender shall be floated and finalised by the end of December 2013 and the de-silting shall be completed by the end of January 2014,” the order stated.

“Funds required for the above purpose shall be provided by the government in the housing and urban development department,” the order added.

The drainage system of Cuttack city constitutes two main storm water channels stretching up to 25km, a network of 29km of branch drains and 72km of tertiary drains with surface water channels measuring up to 660km.