MUMBAI: Western Railway (WR) has geared up for the monsoon by carrying out cleaning of culverts, desilting drains, increasing the level of tracks and identifying flood-prone spots. "We have indentified flood-prone areas. We will pay more attention to these sections near Marine Lines, Charni Road, Grant Road, Mumbai Central, Elphinstone Road, Dadar, Mahim, Andheri, Jogeshwari and Nalasopara-Virar," said WR chief public relations officer Sharat Chandrayan.

The damaged internal roads and waterlogging inside the solid waste treatment plant are hampering the clearing of accumulated waste and fertiliser at Brahmapuram Municipal Solid Waste Treatment plant of the Kochi Corporation.

Water from the nearby water body is reaching the floor of the plant and soaking the waste. A temporary bund has been constructed for preventing water incursion. When it rains, the rain water too spreads dampness on the waste, making the processing nearly impossible, said the officials of the agency which took up the assignment to run the plant.

After repeated squabbles with the civic administration over desilting of the Mithi river, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has now sent an ultimatum to the BMC that it will be doing the desilting work this year for the last time.

Both agencies have been at loggerheads for the past seven years over the desilting of a six-km stretch of the Mithi river, resulting in a delay in desilting and waterlogging in areas around that patch.

KOLKATA, 16 MAY: It may sound unbelievable, but the third oldest underground sewer line in the world has been cleaned for the first time since its installation and re-commissioned today. The mayor, Mr Sovan Chatterjee, and other senior civic officials were present at a function held on Beadon Street to mark the re-commissioning. This will help reducing the duration of stagnant rain water in vast areas in north Kolkata. The underground sewer line has been thoroughly de-silted and strengthened by glass reinforced polymer (GRP) lining at an estimated cost of Rs 15.84 crore.

Faridkot: The state government had acquired large chunks of land for some specific projects many years ago. With the government failing to implement the projects, the land at many places has become a cause of protracted litigation. The original owners of the land, mainly farmers, want it back as its market value has increased manifold.

For instance, in 1977-78, the Education Department had acquired about 22 acres along the Kotkapura-Faridkot road for the construction of a B.Ed college. That time, it was a waterlogged area and the farmers readily agreed to give their land.

GUWAHATI, May 7 – The Kamrup (Metro) district administration has launched its second phase of cleaning and de-siltation to cope with the problem of artificial flooding that has assumed a perennial status in the city. According to official sources, the second phase has been extended to some of the important road side covered drains and open drains in various wards and would be completed by May 23.

New Delhi: The Samajwadi Party is trying to cash in on its recent victory in Uttar Pradesh assembly polls with its manifesto projecting the party as the best alternative to Congress and BJP, which have dominated governance in the capital’s municipality for decades. The upbeat party has fielded candidates on 128 of the 272 seats in MCD highlighting how efforts of the young and dynamic Akhilesh Yadav wiped out BSP from UP and ended Mayawati’s reign.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today asked the Irrigation Department to moot a proposal for amending the Northern India Canal and Drainage Act to check the growing malpractice of water theft in the state. In a meeting held to review the functioning of the department this morning, Badal asked the Chief Engineer (Canals) to submit a comprehensive proposal for making amendments to the Act on the pattern of Haryana and Rajasthan.

KOCHI: The much-hyped Suchitwa Mission’s sanitation project for the coastal panchayats of Chellanam, Kumbalangi and Kumbalam still remains on paper. With the project delaying indefinitely, the chances of it bringing any relief to the people in these places during monsoon seems remote. These three panchayats have been reeling under acute sanitation issues owing to their geographical position and absence of modern septic tanks. Every monsoon, the issues worsen due to water logging and the low-lying landscape of the areas.