Rain waterlogs Bengaluru yet again as anti-encroachment drive continues
Rainfall lashed Bengaluru once again this week leading to waterlogging in certain areas of the tech capital. The city, which was still recovering from the massive flooding last week, is again experiencing traffic snarls and deluge, News18 reported. Meanwhile, the civic administration of Bengaluru has continued its drive to demolish "illegal encroachments" over the city's storm drains. Here's more.
Why does this story matter?
Bengaluru witnessed terrifying torrential rains last week, which left many roads and residential areas waterlogged with people wading through knee-deep water. Visuals from the city resembled nothing short of a dystopia with highways and residential societies submerged in water for days. As techies traveled to offices on tractors, in some areas, authorities had to send rafts to evacuate stranded people.
Rainfall batters Ecospace Junction
According to Indian Express, rainfall on Wednesday evening led to long traffic jams and waterlogging in the Ecospace Junction, which experienced inundation last week as well. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Bengaluru will continue to witness light to moderate rainfall over the next 24 hours, further putting the city at risk. Meanwhile, dead fish were found floating in a Bengaluru lake.
Watch: Dead fish found in Bengaluru's Haralur lake
Watch: Ecospace Junction inundated last week
Demolition drive enters day 4
Meanwhile, the Basavaraj Bommai government continued its demolition drive to remove illegal clusters built upon the city's storm drains. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) continued razing down buildings in Mahadevapura, Yelahanka, and West zones on its third day. JCBs were pressed into service at a number of localities to bring down buildings, gardens, and illegal construction that may have contributed to water-logging.
Watch: Demolition drive in Mahadevapura
Where else will the demolition drive take place?
According to an NDTV report, the high-profile brands that have encroached on drains include Wipro, Prestige, Eco Space, Bagmane Tech Park, Columbia Asia Hospital, and Divyashree Villas. These firms and other encroachers reportedly occupy about 700 drains, thus blocking rainwater from flowing and triggering catastrophic floods throughout the city. These names have been included in BBMP's encroachers' list.
Heavy rainfall warning in these areas
On Thursday, the IMD warned that parts of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Pune may experience heavy rainfall in the coming days. The weather body issued an orange alert for Mumbai and warned that there might be heavy to very heavy rainfall in a few places. Additionally, Delhi may also witness moderate rains on Thursday, the IMD said.
