Warangal grapples with civic woes

Warangal: There seems to be no end to the woes of the denizens in Warangal city, whose patience is nothing short of testimony to endurance. The last month's rains, said to be a record, added more agony to the denizens, who were already grappling with the poor civic infra.

The downpour not only left many colonies marooned but also exposed how municipal, revenue and irrigation officials have turned a blind eye on encroachments over the years.

Even before the rains wreaked havoc on Warangal, almost all the roads in the city are dotted with huge potholes. After the mid-August rains, the situation worsened further. Against this backdrop, MA&UD Minister KT Rama Rao inspected the city on August 18 to get a fair idea of what went wrong.

After extensively visiting colonies, he instructed the officials to take up a special drive to remove encroachments on nalas and water bodies that led to the flooding in the city. He also announced Rs 25 crore as immediate relief to restore the roads and civic amenities in the city.

Following which the district administration had reportedly prepared proposals.

It's learnt that the authorities have come up with proposals to the tune of Rs 20 crore alone for the repairing of roads in and around the city.

Even though it's been five weeks since KTR had announced Rs 25 crore as immediate relief, the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) appears to be in no hurry to improve the pathetic condition of civic infra. But for the minor repairs, the civic body is yet to take up permanent measures. It's learnt that the State government is yet to release Rs 25 crore, which it announced as immediate relief.

When asked about the fate of roads and derailed civic infra, Municipal Commissioner Pamela Satpathy told The Hans India, "We are trying to restore them with the funds available with the Corporation."

Lingam Mounika Charan Reddy, Division 53 Corporator of the Congress, said, "The condition of roads and drains is appalling, especially since the heavy rains that lashed the city in August. It's difficult to address the civic problems with the administration is providing inadequate funds."

"Almost all the roads in the city are in shambles. The potholes make driving nearly impossible," Kumar Gurrapa said, stating that passing through Padmakshi temple-Hunter Road is a herculean task.

The major development is that the civic body has taken up a special drive of removing encroachments on four major nalas (storm-water drains). Of the 370 illegal structures identified, the administration has so far demolished 159.