Four-year flooding problem on the road in Sector 82 in Gurugram leading to Vatika estates

The 500-metre stretch of road in Gurugram Sector 82 leading to the housing estates of Vatika India Next and Vatika Signature Villas has been grappling with waterlogging for the past four years. Despite repeated complaints to civic officials, residents say the road remains in a bad shape, with piles of garbage on either side and a drainage system that is unable to cope with the monsoon rains. The road is currently waterlogged — after the city received heavy rainfall on Sunday — and last week, two buses carrying children from different private schools got stuck on the waterlogged stretch after heavy rain.

Although the deputy commissioner of Gurugram visited the spot with his team after heavy rainfall last week and pumps were used to remove the water, when the stretch became waterlogged again just days later, residents point out that government agencies have been blaming each other for years for the lack of progress in repairing the road infrastructure.

“An inquiry is underway to find out whether the road belongs to a private builder or which civic agency/department. If it is found to be the builder’s road, a notice under Section 133 of CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) will be issued and orders will be issued for drainage management and road repairs,” said Jitendra Kumar, Additional Municipal Commissioner, Manesar.

GMDA (Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority) officials said the main storm water drainage network for sectors 1 to 115 in Gurugram was planned by HSVP (Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran) after the 2012 notification of the Gurugram Manesar Urban Complex Development Plan. GMDA took over the storm water drainage network for sectors 1 to 67 from HSVP in 2017. However, the storm water drainage network for sectors 68 to 80 and 112 to 115 remains incomplete and sectors 81 to 111 have only partial coverage.

Abhinav Verma, executive engineer at GMDA, said on Monday that HSVP will complete the construction of storm water drainage network in the sector and then hand it over to GMDA.

Lots of complaints

Mahesh Yadav, a resident of Vatika Signature Villas in Sector 82, said, “GMDA says HSVP will construct a drain. But HSVP says they cannot lay a drain without a road and Municipal Corporation of Manesar (MCM) is reluctant to construct a road. Vatika has even sent a notice to residents asking for ₹70 lakh for the construction of a public road. Why should the residents of the municipality pay for a public road? They demanded that the Deputy Commissioner intervene to solve the drainage problem.”

Residents of Vatika India Next in Sector 82 have written to the Haryana Chief Minister at least 10 times this year, requesting him to visit the area and take stock of their situation.

“All government agencies have failed to provide basic infrastructure like roads, sewerage and waste management. They are working only on paper; there is no action on the ground,” said Manjeet Ghanghas, a resident of Sector 82 Vatika Floora.

HSVP said it is currently working to complete the missing link in the sewerage network and work is underway.

Stuck kids

Following heavy rainfall on July 11, a private school bus and a bus of another private school in Sector 48 got stuck in the flooded area.

Om Prakash, a private school bus driver, said it was difficult to reach the road section to pick up and drop children when it was flooded. The bus broke down in the middle of the road on Wednesday. “The road was flooded and while the bus was taking the children to school, it broke down in the water. After many attempts, we had to call another bus to safely transport the children. The stuck bus was eventually pulled out with the help of a tractor,” he said.

“Some parents have reported that during the rainy season, when the road is blocked, school buses do not come and schools switch to online learning,” said Navdeep Singh, another resident.

Residents of Sector 82 had earlier raised the issue with MCM officials. Following these complaints, Additional Municipal Commissioner Kumar and engineering wing officials visited the spot on Wednesday, assuring residents of a solution.