Gurgaon waterlogging: Soak opera in Millennium City

“There are health and safety issues because of mosquito breeding and open sewers, but the waterlogging also disrupts the lives of professionals,” says Sumit Kumar, a resident of the area who works in a communication solutions firm. “Taxi and auto drivers refuse to come here, so it is not even possible to commute. On bad day, we have to take the day or part of the day off unless we are willing to wade through the water and get to work wet and dirty.”

District authorities say the situation on the Sheetla Mata Mandir Road and the colonies around is not entirely their fault. “Since the area is located within 900 meters of an ammunition depot, we cannot do construction to resolve the issue. For now, all we can do is clean the drains,” says an official of the Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon. “Further measures can be taken depending on the verdict of the case regarding the restricted zone of the ammunition depot. It is pending before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.” The official adds, “The surface drains have been made only for draining the water on the roads, but since there is no drainage for the ammunition depot, and there is a natural slope from there toward the road, the water accumulates and creates problems.”

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However, this line of defence does not hold good for areas where such technicalities are not prevalent, but the problems are. In Baldev Nagar, for instance, residents complain they have to take precautionary measures every time rain appears imminent. “Whenever the sky is overcast, I park myself at the entrance of the house with a broom to remove the water that flows in,” says Ritu Rathi, a resident of the area. “Often, this is also of no use. In June this year, water filled up and stayed for over 10 hours. What can you do when such waterlogging happens? You just close your doors, hoping that it will stop some water from coming in, and wait.”

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Baldev Nagar residents claim they have complained to the MCG and other agencies and sought help, but it has not arrived yet.

Similar problems are noted even in several “posh colonies” of the city. Many of these colonies are managed by private builders and real estate developers and not the district authorities. In Sushant Lok, for instance, residents say 30 minutes of “medium rainfall” leaves the streets waterlogged. Water often enters the homes and basements, say residents. “This leads to economic issues for us as well, because the boundary walls of independent bungalows get ruined, meaning people have to paint and repair them at their own cost. Basements are submerged and cars parked on the roads can start stalling,” says Dr A K Nagpal, president of the Sushant Lok Residents’ Welfare Association.

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Residents claim they have approached the builder for the maintenance and infrastructure of the colony several times, but there has been no improvement. Dr Santosh Mor, vice-president of the residents’ welfare body, says, “No water harvesting is done anywhere in the area and the drainage system is very bad. Until the drainage infrastructure is fixed and sewage system in and around the colony is improved, this issue will continue to plague us.” Residents of these colonies are hoping the MCG will take over the maintenance, because “things cannot possibly get worse”. Nagpal says, “We are hoping that if the MCG takes over, maybe things will improve for us. Right now, this is a posh colony in name only…”