Waterlogging on the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway led to traffic snarls at all prominent locations across Gurgaon - Hero Honda chowk, sector 15, Sector 14, Iffco Chowk and Shankar chowk. Traffic on both sides of the Gurgaon toll plaza (Kherki Daula) came to a standstill.
The worst-affected were residents of DLF I and Sushant Lok I, where residents had to empty out water from inside their homes. They blamed the respective RWAs for not keeping the stormwater drains that led to the civic mess.
Residents alleged they had been facing the problem since over 10 years. “This is not the first time," said Suresh Chaudhary, resident of DLF phase 1. "We have taken the issue to both the authorities and the builder numerous times. not a finger has been lifted to fix the problem."
Residents took to social media to express their anger and bashed Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) and Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) for the chaos by posting pictures.
“Dear Manoharlal Khattar, you must ask the officers to find out the reason why Gurgaon traffic comes to a standstill after just two hours of rain,” read a post on the Twitter account of Ronak Agarwal.
The clogged sewage lines and overflowing sewage water in the different areas across the city resulted in unrest amongst residents, who approached the authorities to get the problem sorted out. Sector 4, Jharsa road, sector 30, sector 31, Sector 49, sector 50 were areas where the situation was particularly bad. Residents are blaming the outdated infrastructure of the city for the state of disrepair.
The officials claimed that arrangements had been made to pump out the accumulated sewage water but the problem still persisted. “We are scared that if the situation continues this way, Gurgaon could soon face an outbreak of epidemic diseases,” said Dinesh Sharma, a resident of sector 14.
Several residents approached HUDA and MCG offices with their issues. “I took a leave from office today just to get this issue sorted, said Subhash Kumar, a resident of sector 30. "The situation is the same since the past few months. We have been trying to approach the officials over phone but there is no response.”
The district administration has a flood control room set up to resolve issues during monsoons. The initiative aimed at resolving all problems caused due to excess rains, such as waterlogging. The complaints can be registered over phone at the toll free number 1077, District Revenue Officer (DRO)'s number 0124- 2322877 and 0124-2304444, or on Deputy Commissioner's number 0124- 2321144 or 0124- 2325500 (Office).
Residents, however, claimed that none of the numbers were of any help.
“A single spell of rain is enough to expose the condition of basic infrastructure in the city," said Savita Sood, a resident of Sector 49. "Waterlogged roads lead to heavy traffic snarls. Several areas plunge into darkness with power failures. The average power outage in the city ranges from five to eight hours every day. We can’t go out of our houses as the water is knee deep. It even inundates into the vehicles. I called up the helpline and they told me their duty was restricted to the capital.”
