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clever photograph could even make it look rather beautiful,
a slightly seedy but still picturesque version of Venice,
with water flowing where roads should be, and all the
houses apparently rising from the muddy, swirling stream.
Yet the rains which inundated Kolkata in the last week
of September this year brought not beauty but great
inconvenience, distress and even acute misfortune to
many residents.
This was the third time in this particular season that
heavy rains had brought the city to its knees – or,
more correctly, brought knee-level water to large parts
of the city. No doubt, this particular almost continuous
downpour over four days (22-25 September) was the most
severe – totalling nearly 500 cm, reminiscent of the
infamous floods of 1978 in the city.
The flood waters surged through the city, especially
the low-lying areas, and covered all the major avenues
as well as the narrow by-lanes of the bastis. Naturally,
there was huge dislocation, as vehicles could not ply
the roads, commuters and office goers found that it
was impossible to return to their homes, essential journeys
could not be made, necessary goods could not be delivered,
and many houses, shops, offices and goods were damaged
or destroyed.
It is also true, of course, that not all “normal” behaviour
was affected – in the midst of the worst inundation,
gangs of youth waded out in most neighbourhoods, even
in waist-deep water, waving Indian flags in “victory
processions” to celebrate the Indian cricket team’s
triumph in the T20 World Cup finals.
But still, with such a major rainfall, it was perhaps
to be expected that on the day of the most extreme rain,
many streets of the city would be flooded and normal
life would be disrupted. What would not be expected,
however, is that several days after the rain stopped
and the sun had been shining on the City of Joy, the
submergence would continue in several areas and the
water would continue to cover important roads and whole
neighbourhoods.
Yet this was actually what happened. Until the end of
that week at least, significant parts of the city –
such as Behala and Ultadanga to name only two paras
– were still completely waterlogged. The streets of
Behala provided a new source of income to some who were
able to catch fresh tilapia fish from the water to sell
in nearby markets. But others, who were affected not
only by the sometimes swirling and sometimes stagnant
water but also by the associated disruption of the power
supply and the lack of clean drinking water, were less
able to see anything but distress in their situation.
Yet the inconvenience caused by the closing of the roads
and the lack of transport to move goods and people may
be only the lesser part of the problem that the floods
have created. The more pressing concern – and one that
will be apparent only after some more time – is the
likely spread of water-borne diseases, such as not only
gastro-enteritis but also cholera and typhoid. The problems
this will create for a city that is already suffering
inadequate public health infrastructure can only be
imagined.
But why should this extent of waterlogging happen at
all, especially in a city that should be used to fairly
high levels of rainfall? Like Mumbai, Kolkata also is
known to experience bouts of excessive rainfall if not
annually then at least quite often, and again like Mumbai,
each time it seems as if it is something the municipal
authorities are not prepared for.
There are other unfortunate similarities between the
two metros. Both have grown by covering up and building
on formations that provided natural drainage for the
area, in Kolkata’s case the Salt Lake area. And in both,
recent urban expansion and the growth in population
in newly settled areas has remarkably not been accompanied
by systematic plans for expanding sewerage systems.
In this recent case, it is clear that along with the
rains, the rising tide of the Hooghly river, and most
of all, the choked and clogged drains of the city were
to blame for the extended inundation of much of Kolkata.
There was much talk on local TV channels, of how the
use of plastics and polythene bags had caused the drains
to become clogged and prevented the free flow of water.
Also, the pumps that were to be used to pump out the
water from low-lying areas were too few in number, old
and in need of repair.
The issue of drainage, which is finally at the core
of the problem in Kolkata, is in fact what is a major
issue in most of our major cities. And it is that which
makes what happened (indeed, is still happening) in
Kolkata a pointer to what is wrong with so much of our
urban planning across India – a relative neglect of
basic issues like sewage and sanitation.
Despite many years and apparently large sums of investment,
urban sanitation remains completely inadequate in India.
Some estimates say that around one-third of urban residents
do not have access to modern latrines, and therefore
open defecation is still a common practice in all our
towns and cities. Combine that with poor sewerage systems
and infrequent clearing of drains because of inadequate
expenditure on such maintenance. Given these facts,
it may seem a miracle that we do not have even more
widespread incidence of water-borne diseases.
Even in our capital city, which gleams with spanking
new flyovers and shiny new malls, minimal sewage and
sanitation facilities remain completely underprovided
and entire slum settlements housing lakhs of people
are not even provided anything at all officially. Municipal
corporations that are supposed to deal with these matters
are under-funded, and perhaps not as motivated as they
should be to ensure that these basic facilities are
provided adequately and efficiently.
What will it take to put this more firmly on the policy
agenda? Water – and its management – can and indeed
is being privatised, but this process, and the lack
of attention to sanitation, are fraught with peril,
because the rich can escape from the adverse effects
of this only for a short time. Sooner or later, all
of us will be affected – the sad thing is that it may
take real calamities to make our policy makers realise
this.
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