It’s raining misery in KP Agrahara

By Manjunath Hadimani | NT

Bengaluru: Rain has wreaked havoc for around 20 poor families in KP Agrahara near Cottonpet on Saturday night. These families were compelled to keep awake till early Sunday to drain out water that entered their homes. The residents struggled a lot to save food items and food grain when their homes were flooded with rain water.

These families have been residing on 3rd Main Road of KP Agrahara for more than five decades, but their woes began five years ago. Their homes began getting flooded from the nearby drain whenever there was heavy rain.

“We couldn’t sleep the whole night yesterday. We have to keep cleaning for at least three hours after the rain stops, only then we can sleep. Everyone on this street goes through the same problem every time it rains,” said Chandramma, a resident.

The residents blame the BBMP Storm Water Drain Department for their woes. They said that the concrete blocks on the drain (used to cover the drain) were removed one year ago to remove the silt from the drain, but have not been restored.

“The main reason for the drainage water to enter the households is that the BBMP contractor has opened the drain and is yet to close it,” said John Joseph, a resident.

Irudhayam, who has been residing for more than 50 years, said that everything kept on the ground got wet. “We kept most of the things in the attic. This problem was not there before, some 4-5 years ago. BBMP did white topping on the street and after that, the problem started,” she said.