All the service organisations concerned should work together to resolve waterlogging in Chittagong and the people should behave consciously, said City Mayor Dr Shahadat Hossain.
CCC Mayor visited various waterlogging-prone areas during heavy rainfall in Chittagong City on Monday morning,
He visited various areas including Chawkbazar, Katalganj, GEC, Panchlaish, WASA, Bakalia and Lalkhanbazar.
He directed the concerned officials to take immediate measures to resolve the waterlogging problem.
During the inspection, the Mayor listened to the complaints and sufferings of the local residents and said, “Waterlogging is a long-standing problem of Chittagong city. Immediate and effective measures will be taken in the drainage system of Katalganj Road. I have instructed the responsible engineers to immediately repair the drainage system and open the way for water movement.
He said, not only temporary, we are moving towards a permanent solution. The City Corporation is working all-out to alleviate the suffering of the city residents. During the inspection, he distributed leaflets to create public awareness about dengue and chikungunya and supervised the miking activities. As part of the inspection, three families living at risk near Batali Hills were evacuated to a safe place. The Mayor said, we are in a strict position to evacuate those living at risk in the hills. At the same time, regular publicity activities are being carried out to make the public aware.
Commenting that construction of structures without following building codes is one of the reasons for waterlogging in the city, he said, “During my on-site inspection, I saw that they were not following the building codes in the construction of several buildings. I did not agree. I will talk to CDA about this and tell them to demolish the structures built by encroaching on the drains without following the building code. Completely demolish them so that the dirt can be cleaned. We have to do this. Because we have to keep the primary drainage system drains clean.
That is very important. Water is rising in some areas, but as far as I can see, it is not staying like it used to be all day long. It is going to go away after the rain stops for one and a half to two hours. Even then, I want us to keep the service drains here clean. I saw it on the ground today. My panel experts will also come. We will start this work quickly when they come.
At that time, the concerned departmental officials of CCC, local dignitaries and media personnel were present.
