Kochi, May 24 (PTI) With pre-monsoon rains leading to inundation and the actual monsoon just round the corner, the Kerala High Court on Friday directed that all drains in areas prone to flooding in the port-city of Kochi be cleared of debris to ensure free flow of water through them during the rainy season.
The direction was issued by Justice Devan Ramanchandran who said that it was “unfortunate” that the court has to intervene every year in the issue of flooding of many parts of the city during the rainy season.
The court noted that the heavy rains that hit the state in the past few days led to many parts of the city being inundated. “…these have been identified broadly as being 15 hot spots,” it said.
It also pointed out that there were other areas where there were defects in drainage mapping leading to water not flowing properly and requiring the use of pumps.
“… though this court has been attempting to rectify this in the last couple of years, not much change has happened. Thus, the city faces inundation every time heavy rains hit it,” the high court said.
It said that the city can be saved from severe flooding and it requires that the drains be kept clean to the extent possible.
It said that the high-powered committee constituted by the high court must look into all the aspects and ensure that the cleaning of drains and the clearing of debris from areas identified as hotspots is carried out “on an imperative basis”.
The court ordered the committee to ensure that the municipal corporation clears all the drains and that water flow is smooth in all the hotspots already identified, before the next date of hearing of the matter on May 27. PTI HMP CORR HMP ANE
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