As the first heavy showers continued to lash the state, parts of Pernem, Mapusa, Guirim, Bambolim and Agassaim flyover reported heavy water logging till Wednesday evening. A retaining wall in St Andre collapsed and a subway near Goa Medical College was flooded as traffic movement continued to be affected in several areas.
Parts of EDC Patto complex, Mala, Bhatulem, St Inez, Taleigao, Miramar circle, Campal and near the bus stand remained submerged as Panaji experienced 202.9mm rainfall in 24 hours as of Wednesday morning. Among the worst affected area ‘18th June road’ was also affected which is situated in the heart of the capital. Water entered into the shops and motorists struggled to wallow their vehicles through knee-deep water.
A similar scene has been witnessed in nearby Bambolim where the underpass near Goa Medical College was also flooded forcing its closure. The underpass was used by doctors, dentists, nurses, and many other people. The closure of the underpass caused long lines of vehicles on highway.
Residents rejoinder
The residents fed up up by annual floods commences questioning government and authority. “The same government for the past 10 years now,” said city resident Madhav Dessai. “How much more time does it take to rectify problems that occur every year? The government has subverted public dissent when they wanted to, arranged for finance when they wanted to change the rules. So what’s stopping them here.”
An official of the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP,) requesting anonymity, said, “Parts of the capital were flooded mainly during a two-hour spell of heavy rainfall on Tuesday night. The low-lying areas in Panjim are prone to flooding when the tide is high. We have installed pumps and de-silting work has been done for flood mitigation and to avoid water logging. Some works under the Smart City project are pending, due to which the problem has been aggravated.”
Politics
Congress leader Amarnath Panjikar said: “Panaji Smart City is flooded after just an hour of rain. Just imagine Union Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri what will happen if it rains continuously for more than one hour? We had requested you (Puri) to hold a padyatra and walk through Panaji to inspect, but you preferred to sit in the AC Room to enjoy.” Referring to the incident.Earlier in may when Union Minister Puri visited the state to rebiew th ‘SMART CITY’, Congress advised him to hold a padyatra in Panaji to inspect the sub standard work and corruption involved.
In May, the PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral, after an inspection of ongoing sewerage work, had told the media that no assurances could be given that Panjim will not see flooding this monsoon. “I will be very blunt. There is no assurance about flooding this year…but if we work together in the next year, the following year, there will be no flooding. That we can assure. I found that drains have not been cleared for the past 20 years and they are filled with mud…,” Cabral had said.
