Rain-hit fume at 'official apathy'

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, AUG. 25. Even as a rain-battered Capital is struggling to return to normalcy with people working overtime, authorities are faced with a barrage of complaints of either delayed action or no action at all. The administration stands exposed of its gross inability to react to emerging crisis situations.

A drive around Khairatabad, Domalguda, Himayatnagar, Gandhi Nagar, Kavadiguda, Minister's Road, Sindhi Colony and Rasoolpura showed the trail of devastation left behind. Vast stretches of roads are buried under a thick layer of mud, slime and rubble left behind by the waters.

Vijaya, daughter of a teacher living in the low-lying area of Babu Jagjivan Ram Nagar in Khairatabad says, ``We have seen no action after the visit of the Minister for Information, Dr. N. Sivaprasad. We are too busy mopping up our houses after water left its nasty trail.'' At 3 p.m. on Friday, an MCH health worker was seen distributing a half-a-dozen tablets to residents in the area asking them to be sure to mix them with the water before drinking it.

Bhasker, a trader, was tinkering with his two-wheeler that was submerged in water for 36-hours. Ask him if he has seen any official, the answer is spontaneous, ``Absolutely not.'' The response was the same from several residents in the adjoining Maruti Nagar. However, in the lower-most part of the area, the engine of a water tender of the A.P. Fire Services was roaring as it sucked out water from the basement of a residential building.

In Krishna Nagar and Sindhi colony, both posh, but low-lying areas, residents were seeing `terra firma' after 36 hours. One resident said, ``Some of us can only be accused of not paying Income-tax. But we are regular tax-payers for MCH. But we have not seen any official around in our area,''

Mr. Dhiren of Sindhi colony and Mr. Sridhar of Krishna Nagar are all but fuming. ``First, the officials do not come with pumps. And when we hire pumps and bale out the water from our area, the traffic police comes and stops us saying we are disrupting traffic on the Minister Road. What do we do,'' they ask.

The residents of these two colonies did not see action even after the Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, himself saw their plight and promised to send a pump immediately. On his visit to the colonies on Friday evening, there was an argument between the residents and officials in the Pilot vehicle, who demanded that the hose pipes be removed.

Earthmovers were at work near the Ashok Nagar nala, removing huge mounds of earth and garbage deposited by the water. In the interior parts of Domalguda, Himayatnagar and Gandhinagar, everyone seemed busy cleaning up their vehicles. Invariably a sogged seat of a four-wheeler would be ripped out. Ramesh, a software professional who had got a gleaming new Maruti Zen gives his now-lost-of-its-Japanese sheen a wistful look and mutters, ``Oh God, why did it happen to me?''

At some places `Air-tech' de-clogging machines of the Metrowater Board were seen in operation trying to free the drains and improve their carrying capacities. Mr. K. Prabhakar Reddy, Executive Director, Metrowater Board, said as of now the position was safe and there was no scope for opening the floodgates unless there was more rain.

The levels at Osmansagar, Himayatsagar, Singur and Manjira reservoirs stood at 1788.600, 1759.540, 1715.240 and 1644 feet respectively, as against full reservoir level of 1790, 1763.500, 1717.400 and 1651.750 feet respectively.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : 29 rescued after spending three nights atop a tree
Next     : Poor bear the brunt of rain god's fury