As the monsoon nears, railway authorities have sought to assure Mumbaikars that this year, there will be no disruptions in suburban services, which usually witness substantial breakdowns every rainy season. The Western Railway (WR) has added Digital Axel Counters (DACs) on standby in case the track circuiting system fails, and in turn causes signal failures, at nearly 500 flood-prone areas. DACs are trackside equipment which, when the train passes, count and store the number of axles by means of a software at both ends of the track.

GUWAHATI, Jan 17 – The Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) has assured people that the task of cleaning the drains of the lanes and by-lanes of the city would be completed well ahead of the monsoons season, to check the problem of waterlogging. Countering the allegations that it is due to the negligence of the Guwahati Municipal Corporation that the city is flooded after every rainfall, the GMC officials said that the work of drain cleaning in the city is done by three different government departments.

Mumbai: In a bid to tackle the growing sewage problems in the western suburbs, the BMC is all set to unveil its Rs-400 crore project proposal under the Mumbai Sewage Disposal Project Stage II for Zone 5 (Malad, Borivli, Dahisar). By preventing the overflow of sewage in low-lying areas, the project aims to improve the condition of 48 chronic flooding spots.

To provide better landscape and green areas in the city, a few of the major drains are being covered. The move will allow authorities to make walkways, parks and roads, even as environmentalists claim that covering of drains will lead to choking and other heath issues.
According to Delhi Development Authority, the drains in Lajpat Nagar and Defence Colony will be covered by March 2012. A portion of Palam drain is also being covered to allow more road space to decongest Dabri bridge and Pankha road crossing. This work will be completed by August 2013.

The state government has set up an inter-departmental co-ordination committee to monitor the revamp of the city’s centuries-old drainage system before the next monsoon, irrigation minister Manas Bhuniya said on Tuesday.
As a first step, a smaller panel comprising representatives of the irrigation department, CMC, CEIP and the CMDA has prepared a status report after surveying the drainage system in Calcutta and areas under adjacent municipalities like Kamarhati, Panihati and North and South Dum Dum.

New Delhi: A cloudburst at Palam, with 117mm rain coming down in just over an hour on Thursday afternoon, saw the arrival section of the world-class terminal 3 of IGI Airport submerged in ankle deep water and massive traffic jams on the approach roads led to several passengers missing their flights.

Met officials said the massive downpour at the airport, which began at 2.35pm, was indeed a cloudburst since it was highly localized. Safdarjung recorded only 35mm rain between 8.30am and 5.30pm against Palam’s total of 120mm. More showers are predicted on Friday.

The incessant rainfall is not only leading to waterlogged roads, but the water is also entering several housing societies, confining residents to their homes for the last several hours.

Surindra Khubchandani, a Khar resident, said he has been complaining to the civic body since the last several years, but the problem remains unsolved.

“Now, our society is also submerged, and the open space of our colony has turned into a pond. We have been forced to shift our belongings and furniture. The corporation should be serious about nullah cleaning,” he said.