PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
Continuous rainfall since Tuesday morning caused severe waterlogging on several roads and in residential areas across Dehradun, creating major inconvenience for residents and commuters. The situation once again highlighted the city’s inadequate drainage system, with rainwater entering several houses and overflowing onto roads.
Ahead of the monsoon, the Municipal Corporation of Dehradun (MCD) had constituted a Quick Response Team (QRT) and issued a toll-free helpline to respond to waterlogging complaints and flood-related emergencies. The teams have been deployed to rescue stranded residents, pump out water from inundated houses and clear waterlogged roads.
Dehradun municipal commissioner Alok Kumar Pandey on Wednesday said that the flood and disaster control room had received 10 waterlogging-related complaints in the last 24 hours. He said that QRT teams had been dispatched immediately to the affected locations and were working round the clock to minimise inconvenience to the public during the rainfall.
The officials at the flood and disaster control room said that complaints had been coming in continuously since morning. They said that the morning shift comprises two call response operators and one supervisor, while 10 field personnel have been deployed to attend emergency calls and remove waterlogging from affected areas.
A QRT member Gaurav Kumar said that the team has four small generator pumps, 12 large generator pumps and two cutters for emergency operations. He said that each eight-hour shift consists of 10 personnel, one supervisor and two drivers operating a tractor and a JCB. He added that the team had already attended three waterlogging sites.
