GUJRAT: Water receded more than 24 hours after torrential rain stopped. The downpour for three consecutive days wreaked havoc on the city as localities presented a scene of pond even on Saturday which was otherwise a sunny day.

According to the Gujrat Municipal Corporation (GtMC), 140 milimetre rain was recorded during three days (Wednesday to Friday).

The city’s main ponding areas include the Jail Chowk, Prince Chowk, Rehman Shaheed Road, Kutchery Chowk, Bhimbher Road near cricket stadium, Railway Road whereas the adjoining roads, streets and residential areas were also submerged by rainwater.

Criticising the incumbent and former rulers and lawmakers from Gujrat, locals were of the view that their elected representatives failed to rectify the decades-old problem of poor drainage and sewerage of Gujrat city and demanded an audit of the [so far] spending on different related projects.

Show-cause to PHED official for not overhauling disposal stations

Last time, a huge sum of Rs1 billion had been spent on revamp of the drainage in 2006-07 when Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi of PML-Q was the Punjab chief minister, but owing to lack of proper planning and poor quality of the work these schemes could not bring about the desired results and citizens had been left at the mercy of urban flooding till today.

The executing agency of projects - the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) - had been the ‘most inefficient and corrupt wing’ of the government and almost all schemes executed by PHED lacked quality and no punitive action against the concerned authorities, engineers and contractors was taken.

Meanwhile, senior PML-Q leader MNA Moonis Elahi has taken notice of the situation in Gujrat and talked to Deputy Commissioner Dr Khurram Shahzad and issued directions about taking measures to ensure early drainage of rainwater.

The DC has issued a show-cause notice to the executive engineer of Gujrat PHED for not completing the project of overhauling of three major disposal stations - Bole, Kalara and Narowali - prior to the current monsoon season as the schemes had been given funds worth Rs70 million.

The DC has also warned the PHED to complete the installation of new pumping machines as well as repair of other infrastructure before Sept 15.

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2020