Water-logging invasive

The result was that most of the roads and lanes went under water. The worst-affected areas were Mouchak, Malibagh and Shantinagar crossing. The situation in most areas of old Dhaka also became precarious.

The problem is a recurring one and its ill-effects are far too known to be recounted. But lack of sound planning and coordination between government agencies on the one hand, and between them and the DCC on the other, are contributing significantly to an aggravation of the situation. Water-logging in the Mouchak-Malibagh area is the result of a WASA storm sewer line terminating at the Malibagh rail-crossing. Its extension by another 500 metres will have greatly eased the problem of choking. But the technical difficulties arising out of the need for laying the line across the bottom of the railway track are yet to be solved. WASA has sought permission from the railway authorities to do the work, but the latter want it to be done during the dry season to avoid disruption of train service. So coordination between the two agencies is clearly missing, and so is the sense of urgency. Citizens know how much trouble they are facing for the government agencies' inability to quicken the pace of the work they are supposed to be doing in public interest.

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Water-logging at Shantinagar crossing persists for a different reason. Or is it? The road level was raised by the DCC at a cost of Tk 6 crore to avoid accumulation of rainwater on it, but WASA has not created the drainage line to flush out the water. Here, the DCC and the WASA are not working in tandem.

Then in many areas, particularly in old Dhaka, WASA's storm sewers have broken the surface drains of the DCC. The surface drainage network of the DCC has been crippled by the fact that nearly 2,500 drains are not functioning, which, claims the WASA, is also leading to blockage of its sewerage pipes. Last but not the least, 22 natural water channels and some pools in the low-lying areas have been clogged.

So, water-logging on such a scale was only inevitable given the way the city's drainage system has been managed. The government agencies have to address the problem on the basis of a well-thought-out plan and, more important, achieve better coordination and understanding among themselves.