Kochi Corporation takes up de-clogging of drains during night hours

It is to minimise inconvenience to the public and traders during Onam season

The Kochi Corporation has decided to de-clog drains during night hours considering the heavy rush on city streets on account of Onam.

Slabs on drains on MG Road were taken off during night hours to minimise inconvenience to the public and traders, according to a social media post by Mayor M. Anilkumar.

The civic administration decided to check drains once again in the wake of severe waterlogging in the city during the recent heavy rain.

Huge quantities of food waste was found clogged in some drains in the region near a hotel thus blocking the flow of floodwaters. Food waste was seen accumulated in the drain to a length of around 20 metres. Dumping food and plastic waste in drains cannot be tolerated, he said.

Similarly, inlets into drains on Banerji Road and MG Road were found insufficient to drain away rainwater. Most water traps on the two roads were also covered by waste. The Corporation, Cochin Smart Mission Limited, and the Irrigation department need to work together to address the issue, the Mayor said.

Meanwhile, the Congress-led Opposition councillors in the Corporation staged a protest demanding a comprehensive project to address waterlogging in the city.

The lackadaisical attitude of the civic body to implementing pre-monsoon cleaning operations is to be blamed for the heavy flooding the city experienced during the recent showers. All that the city administration has is a flood management project that was drafted some two decades ago. New projects with a futuristic approach and taking into account the changes that have taken place in the city over the years need to be introduced, they demanded.