PANAJI
Even as the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) prepared for the monsoon, the unexpected downpour over the past few days caught many off guard. While large parts of Margao and Mapusa were inundated, Panjimites found some measure of relief — though perhaps only temporary.
The torrential rainfall owing to upper air cyclonic circulation has laid bare the challenges facing the city ahead of the official onset of the southwest monsoon, now expected any time soon. Among the pressing concerns are unsafe buildings and precarious trees, which civic officials admit pose a serious risk to public safety.
Adding to the woes are remaining unfinished Smart City works. Besides, alleged haphazard road-topping has left gaping cavities along several roads. At least two vehicles were reportedly stuck this week after veering into such roadside hazards.
Officials conceded that the problem is not just water but the height of the tarred roads. The gaping roadside cavities, created by the alleged haphazard Smart City road-topping works, saw at least two vehicles stuck in them this week. Officials conceded that the problem is not just water but the height of the tarred roads.
“In a rush to comply with High Court directives, the agency rushed to resurface city roads. But this 'tarring-over-trouble' approach has only raised carriageway levels whereas the footpaths are still unfinished at several places. The resulting gaps now collect rainwater, turning these stretches into accident-prone areas,” the official said.
Even before the rains, a shadow loomed over Panaji in the form of its trees. After the death of a teenage girl last year due to a falling branch near Church Square, the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP), assisted by the Forest Department, surveyed and marked 350 trees at risk of collapsing.
However, quite a few are yet to be pruned, and some trees — also branches — have already given way. The felling of a huge mango tree — located in front of the North Collectorate Office — damaging over a dozen parked two-wheelers was one such embarrassment over claims of monsoon preparedness.
Sources told 'The Goan' that the proposal for a new drainage system from Miramar Circle to Bal Bhavan — was still under administrative review. The pending work led to waterlogging as rains lashed Goa since Monday. Moreover, the desilting of Ribandar and parts of Panaji is yet to be carried out by the CCP as Smart City works in these areas are still underway.
On the other hand, Panaji — by and large — has been fortunate to not face major rain-related issues such as flooding or severe waterlogging at least so far.
Meanwhile, fragile buildings across Panaji are staring down the barrel of structural failure. A pre-monsoon audit by the Public Works Department listed around 52 building reinforcement projects including government-owned structures. While 38 are completed, the rest are in varying stages of completion with works stalled due to torrential rains.
Nearly a dozen structures have reportedly reached only 70 per cent completion, an official said. “Our target was May 31 but heavy to extremely heavy rainfall has hampered progress. Mostly, work orders are issued in April with a 45-day window for execution. If not for the rain, all works would be done by now,” the official added.
Structural testing is ongoing, and a few buildings such as old police quarters have been vacated for demolition and reconstruction. “NDT (Non-Destructive Testing) is being used to scientifically prove structural weakness,” the source added.
