Bhopal: Despite the Bhopal Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) claims of having cleaned 80% of the city’s drains in preparation for the monsoon, a recent zone-wise assessment reveals a different reality. Encroachments on the 789 drains have severely hampered cleaning efforts, risking severe flooding once the rains commence.
An estimated 20,000 encroachments within nine metres of the city’s drains have remained untouched for years, rendering many drains inaccessible to cleaning machinery. The BMC initiated its annual drain cleaning campaign on May 2, targeting completion by June 15. However, progress has been severely limited by these extensive encroachments. Sources indicate that many areas are inaccessible to the deployed 20 small and large Poklane machines due to these obstructions. The challenges posed by encroachments are multifaceted. Most of the drains are covered with slabs, making it practically impossible for the machinery to operate effectively. As a result, the BMC has only managed to unclog about 20% of the drains, falling significantly short of their optimistic claims. The financial burden of renting the necessary machinery is considerable. The BMC has engaged around 20 Poklane and JCB machines, with over half being rented. The rental cost for one machine is approximately Rs 3,000 per hour. Operating a single machine for eight hours costs Rs 24,000. With an average of 10 rented machines running for eight hours daily, the expenditure is Rs 2.4 lakh each day.
Encroachments on Bhopal’s drains are not a new issue. A 2014 survey revealed that around 20,000 dwellings were within a nine-metre radius of the drains, often adjacent to or directly above the retaining walls. This situation worsened in July 2016 when a severe flood prompted an aggressive but ultimately ineffective campaign to remove these encroachments. The report highlights that “houses built on the retaining wall of the drain” remain a persistent challenge. Despite multiple attempts over the years, the situation has not improved, complicating cleaning efforts and posing significant flood risks. With the monsoon imminent, the inadequacies of the current drain cleaning measures are becoming increasingly apparent. Bhopal’s drainage system is in a precarious state, facing the same grim prospects as in previous flood-prone years, notably July 2016. Despite the apparent urgency, the BMC has, so far, been unable to shift the status quo.
