17 societies in floodline court disaster each time river rises

Pune: About 17 societies, housing nearly 450 families, on Sinhagad Road constructed within the floodline are in danger of a major disaster.
In the last few days, when 40,000 cusecs of water was released from Khadakwasla, these societies were inundated. The blue line of the river is 60,000 cusecs. Experts say that if 60,000 cusecs of water is released from the dam, then all these societies would be under water.
Blue flood lines are the boundaries along the main river bed enough to carry one-and-a-half times the normal water flow during average floods, which occur once in 25 years. Constructions within this line are prohibited.
Following a state government circular in 1989, the irrigation department in 2008 defined the high floodlines (HFL) of the Mutha river running through the city. The department surveyed the 27km stretch of the river from Khadakwasla dam to Kharadi, and came up with a detailed report mentioning the high floodlines along the river.
However, a number of residential constructions had already come up within the high floodlines.
"The irrigation department had sent the flood line survey to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). But the civic body did not superimpose the floodline in the Development Plan (DP) of 23 villages merged in civic limits. The PMC earmarked survey number 13 in Vitthalwadi Hingane on Sinhagad Road as a residential zone, when actually it came under floodline, which is a prohibitory zone. The Gram Panchayat had also already given many building permissions in the floodline," said environment activist Sarang Yadwadkar. He added that the irrigation department issued "erroneous" No Objection Certificates (NOC) to these buildings.
"People who bought flats in these societies are not to be blamed because the land title was clear, PMC and the irrigation had issued NOCs and nationalize banks gave them loans. The PMC has to take responsibility and relocate these people," Yadwadkar added.
"We will not move out of our flats. PMC and the irrigation department must take some steps so that there is no flooding in our societies. Why should we be punished for no fault of ours?" resident Shravani Bobade said. She added that local MLA and corporators give assurance every year that they will do something to stop the flooding, but it never bears fruit.
PMC officials and the irrigation department, meanwhile, have been passing the buck. A senior PMC official said that the irrigation department has not submitted its floodline survey as per survey numbers and hence there is confusion about marking floodlines in the DP.
Irrigation officials said that they have "fulfilled" their responsibility of marking floodline and now the PMC must ensure that the floodline is not violated.
On the ground, the actual floodline is not clearly demarcated. In 2011, the PMC and the state irrigation department together decided to mark the floodlines of Mula and Mutha rivers to demarcate river area and facilitate disaster management.
As per the proposal, the PMC and the irrigation department constructed pillars in the two rivers at a distance of 200m for a stretch of 27km from Khadakwasla to Kharadi. These pillars were to have floodline marks to help the PMC incorporate the river area in the DP.
"The floodline is violated and encroachments are rampant here. Rivers in the city are victims of apathy and killing of rivers is showing its results now," Rajya Sabha MP Vandana Chavan said, adding that the sanctity of floodlines is not maintained in the city.