Pune: Residents of the Gharkul housing project in Chikhali have intensified their agitation against chronic waterlogging, recurring flooding for over a decade and disruption in power and potable water supply for days every monsoon.They are demanding that Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) implement a permanent solution to the persistent issues instead of relying on temporary measures every monsoon.The housing project was built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) for the economically weaker sections (EWS). The people moved in around 2014. The project comprises 158 buildings with 42 flats each and accommodates over 30,000 residents. Every year, around 30 buildings have consistently been affected by flooding, residents said.The protests escalated after heavy rain, once again, left large parts of the township under waist-deep water and disrupted electricity and water supply recently. Hundreds of families were left in the lurch. A week ago, residents had blocked the Spine Road — a major arterial road connecting the Pune-Nashik and Pune-Mumbai highways. A demonstration outside the PCMC headquarters followed the blockade.Sanjay Talekar, a resident of the society, said the latest flooding was the worst the township had witnessed. “The floodwater reached inside the lift of our building. It became non-operational for nearly 10 days. It resumed service only yesterday. Outside our building, the water was almost waist-deep, making it extremely difficult for residents to even step out of their homes. Senior citizens and women suffered the most,” he said.A resident of the society since inauguration, Shantaram Khude, said, “For the past 12 years, we have only heard assurances from the civic administration and political leaders, but nothing has changed on the ground. Every monsoon, floodwater reaches the electricity meters and parking areas of our building. For safety, the power supply has to be disconnected, leaving us without electricity for several days,” he said.The flooding, Khude said, contaminates the underground drinking water tanks. “Every time, we have to pump out water, clean the tanks thoroughly and only then can the water be used for drinking,” he said.Residents blamed the flooding in their society on the influx of stormwater from neighbouring areas. “Storm water from Krushnanagar, Phulenagar and Shahunagar flows into the Gharkul area. PCMC’s sewage treatment plants overflow during downpour which adds to the flooding. While the internal storm water network is adequate for the colony’s own runoff, it cannot handle the additional water from surrounding localities,” said resident Sudhakar Dhuri.“We have gotten assurances every passing year that the problem will be resolved before the next monsoon. On ground, however, nothing changes. During the recent flooding, we were left without electricity and drinking water for four days,” he added.PCMC has been deploying pumps and other machinery every monsoon to remove stagnant water. Last year, it began replacing the existing storm water drainage network with larger pipelines, but the work remains incomplete. The colony got inundated again this year as a result.Another resident, Ramesh Shinde, said civic officials routinely responded with temporary relief instead of addressing the root cause. “Every time we raised the issue, officials inspected the area or deployed machinery to pump out the water. But beyond these temporary measures, no concrete steps have been taken,” he said.Amid the growing protests, Pimpri Chinchwad mayor Ravi Landge visited the housing society on Thursday along with senior officials from the concerned departments. After inspecting the area and interacting with residents, he directed officials to prepare a long-term plan to resolve the recurring flooding.Atul Patil, assistant municipal commissioner and F ward officer, said work on replacing the existing storm water drainage lines had been delayed due to technical issues. It would be completed within the next two to three days, he said.“We have decided to explore options to divert storm water flowing from the upper catchment areas away from the Gharkul colony. The existing drainage network will be cleaned and inspected, and we will also examine the feasibility of laying an additional storm water line. Officials from all concerned departments will work in coordination to resolve the issue,” Patil said.
