Waterlogged roads must become thing of the past

Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

Despite spending crores on revamping roads and constructing nullahs, waterlogging remains unresolved in Vasai taluka, with officials blaming the tides to
deflect responsibility.

Residents of Gass village in Vasai West are forced to wade through knee-high water to access their homes. They claim they have been facing problems for five years at least, with water threatening to enter their homes, and that complaints to the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) have seen little to no change though there was a visit from a senior official.

With so many technological advances, waterlogged roads must become a thing of the past. If pumps are inadequate then more must be added so that the situation is quickly addressed and there are remedies.

Besides waterlogging, if there are problems like potholes and lack of properly illuminated roads, they must be tackled quickly. The authorities must be alive to the fact that residents are suffering and make regular on-ground assessments regardless of whether complaints are made.

Passing the buck, citing different agencies that are responsible for different tasks, reeling out bogus timelines… all these are familiar and frustrating patterns for locals. One has to go beyond immediate inconvenience to realise that there are dangers too, in allowing problems to fester.

Potholes lead to accidents and there are enough examples of this, in fact, too many to recount here. Poor lighting invites crime and waiting at poorly lit public infrastructure is very dangerous, especially for women. Waterlogging forces one to wade home and to different destinations in flooded spots, which could have health consequences. The issue is certainly not trivial as it also impacts mental health and quality of life negatively.