BMC divide hampers nullah work

Vehicles pass through a waterlogged service road after heavy rainfall in Ghatkopar, on Saturday. (Photo: Rajesh Jadhav)

With the city already having surpassed its long period average rainfall for June, ambiguity between two major water-related departments of BMC could hamper its nullah flooding protection project.

The storm water drain (SWD) department, after conducting studies at rivers and nullahs of the city, has said that a flood control line is not required whereas the revised draft development plan (RDDP) 2034 has already demarcated a 6-metre buffer zone alongside nullahs as natural areas. Moreover, the SWD chief engineer’s remark about building a RCC wall for nullahs and rivers to prevent flooding has not gone down well with water conservationists who believe this will adversely impact conservation efforts.

This difference of opinion between development plan authorities and the SWD department came to the fore after the latter, in a written reply to NGO, Watchdog Foundation, negated the importance of a buffer zone. In its letter dated December 15, 2015, in the wake of the Chennai floods, the NGO had drawn Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s attention to the importance of buffer zones being marked for Mumbai’s four rivers. Paying heed to the NGO’s request, RDDP 2034 duly marked buffer zones not only for rivers and creeks but also nullahs in the city, informed Godfrey Pimenta from Watchdog Foundation.

However, in another correspondence, SWD chief engineer said that two companies — Watson Hawksley International Ltd and their ally, Indian Company A.I.C. — had been appointed as consultants for the flood prevention project. The draft master plan — prepared post an extensive SWD survey of the city including difficulties faced during desilting and maintenance operations of the system – was termed BRIMSTOWRD Report. “In Mumbai, widening and deepening of rivers and nullahs is being done by constructing a RCC retaining wall on either side of the bank up to high flood level as per the recommendations of these consultants. Therefore, flood control line is not required to be determined for rivers and nullahs in Mumbai,” said the chief engineer in his letter.

Meanwhile, RDDP 2034 had already made provision for a non-development “buffer zone” on a six metre periphery on either side of the water bodies. The strategy aimed to mitigate flood vulnerability during high tide, by permitting water bodies to flood their banks.