2 Punjab cities drown after hours of rain: blame on crumbling infra, govt apathy

The story remains the same: the drainage system laid decades ago was never upgraded despite rapid urbanisation and an exploding population. Encroachments over natural water channels, blocked nullahs, and disappearing stormwater drains block the movement of rainwater.

“The problem is compounded by unchecked garbage mismanagement. Polybags and plastic waste, used extensively in markets and homes, choke drains. Despite repeated court orders, water harvesting and groundwater recharging laws remain on paper, never implemented in spirit. Urban planning has failed to factor in climate change, which is bringing frequent and more intense bouts of rainfall,” said a senior officer with the Punjab Local Bodies Department in Chandigarh. “In almost all old cities of Punjab, including Jalandhar, the sewer system was laid 3-4 decades ago, but was hardly upgraded to meet the demands of the increasing population.”

Experts point out that what once were occasional cloudbursts or long-duration showers are now appearing as short and high-intensity events, often 8-9 times stronger than what the region experienced in the late 1990s. This shift is visible across north India: Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and even Punjab have witnessed extreme rainfall in recent years, yet the urban infrastructure remains inadequate to cope with the situation.

“Natural drainage systems, which once allowed excess water to flow into rivers and rivulets, have been encroached upon or concretised,” Chandigarh IMD Director Surinder Paul said, adding: “Urban flooding in Punjab has turned into a man-made disaster. While rainfall is a natural phenomenon, the absence of scientific urban planning and the collapse of civic responsibility have converted even showers into flash floods.”

Preventive measures like early warning systems, coordinated action between Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, J&K and central agencies like the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB), and regular monitoring meetings have been missing. “Only calamities elicit response,” said an activist and advocate Simranjeet Singh, adding: “Unless Punjab urgently upgrades its sewerage and drainage systems, implements waste segregation, restores natural water channels and enforces rainwater harvesting, its cities will continue to drown in every rain.”

“The writing on the wall is clear: climate change is here, and the state’s civic bodies and successive governments can no longer afford to ignore it,” Simranjeet Singh rued.

According to officials of the sewer wing of the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation, houses with 8 marlas and above must install a water recharge system as per the law, but no one cares when the house map is passed.

Also, all streets in the majority of colonies are covered with concrete, and there is no space for water seepage into the ground, leaving rainwater stagnated in streets for days after heavy rain.

With Jalandhar city falling in the “dark zone” where fresh tubewells are banned due to over-exploited groundwater, the Municipal Corporation has started a project worth Rs 2,000 crore to bring Beas river water through pipelines. Pipelines have been laid in some localities, but the project is hanging fire to date, despite Jalandhar’s need for at least 400 MLD water daily.