PCB conducts clean-up drive to avert rain pain

Pune: A day after the monsoon arrived, the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) on Tuesday claimed to be "fully prepared" for the rains.
The low-lying areas of the Cantonment - especially the residential ones - were flooded during monsoon last year with many residents complaining of rainwater entering into their houses. This prompted the administration to deploy heavy-duty pumps to pump water out from these areas.
The failure of stormwater drains, main sewage lines and catch pits were also obvious in the flooding incidents. The nullahs in the area, which are often vital in draining away excess water, were also found to be clogged.
However, this year round, the board said they have "rectified" most of the lacunae that existed last year. "This year, we have completed the cleaning of the main sewage lines, which is a biannual exercise. The stormwater drains, catch pits, and sunken wells have also been cleaned," said a senior PCB official. All contingency measures will also be put in place in case of heavy downpour to avoid waterlogging, he added.
"We will have engineering department officials on standby to tackle unforeseen situations like pumping out excess water from any location. Our engineers will be equipped with pumps and equipment to help citizens out in such situations," the official said.
The large-scale clearing of the two main nullahs in the area - Manik and Bhairobha nullahs - will be completed by next month, PCB officials said, adding that some work in that regard has been done by the department itself.
"The tender to clean the nullahs on a larger scale has not been awarded yet due to procedural difficulties. However, our department has already carried out preliminary desilting and cleaning works in these nullahs to avoid clogging," said an engineering department official.