S Bachan Jeet Singh By Express News Service HYDERABAD: Every year, with disturbing regularity, the city flunks the rain test. Flooding of roads, low-lying areas, uprooting of trees, electricity poles and cables, falling of hoardings and overflowing of stormwater drains are a common sight every year. Though monsoon is about to set over Telangana, preparations including restoration of roads that were dug for laying cables, water and sewer lines, levelling of manholes and catchpits to road surface level by various government and private agencies are still in progress. As many as over 200 critical, major and medium waterlogging points need to be addressed. Development works took a back seat due to model code of conduct being in force in view of multiple elections. A few days ago, citizens of Hyderabad had a temporary respite from the scorching heat in the form of pre-monsoon showers. However, showers for few minutes has brought the city to its knees as a majority of the roads were flooded with rainwater resulting in traffic jams due to archaic stormwater drains and lack of nala desilting works to remove all accumulated material in the drains and nalas. A few of waterlogging points call for immediate attention. They include Raj Bhavan Road, Lake View Guest House, Model House in Punjagutta, KCP Junction, Khairatabad RTA Office, Oliphant Bridge in Secunderabad. Though the Corporation has banned road cutting works from May 31 to avoid any inconvenience to citizens, but restoration works are yet to be completed by the various road cutting agencies. Government departments like Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company Limited, TS Transco and Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board were given sufficient time for road digging and asked them to complete the works by May 31. However, restoration works are under progress at different places in the city. Similarly, desilting works are going at a slow pace, a little over 60 per cent of desilting work has been completed to date. Though GHMC Commissioner, M Dana Kishore fixed deadline as June 7 to complete the desilting works, they would be delayed by another two-three weeks. Of the 800 km lane proposed for desilting, about 500 km lane has been cleared. As part of monsoon preparedness, a survey was conducted to identify the dilapidated structures in all circles. There are over 777 structures which are in dilapidated condition. Notices are being slapped on the owners, occupiers of the structures to vacate and demolish the buildings or else GHMC would initiate action to demolish them. Disaster Management Plan To deal with rain-related emergencies, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) has come out with Disaster Management Plan. As a part of it, 27 Emergency Response Teams (ERT) teams have been constituted and a sum of Rs 1.12 crore has been allotted. All manhole covers which are below and above ground level would be brought to the road surface.

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