WASA managing director says city mayor 'more liable' for Dhaka waterlogging 

WASA Managing Director Taqsem A Khan has come out all guns blazing in response to Dhaka South Mayor Sayeed Khokon's comments blaming his agency for waterlogging, insisting it is the city corporation that is more liable than the utility.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 27 July 2017, 08:23 PM
Updated : 27 July 2017, 08:44 PM

The MD of Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority or WASA made the claim at an emergency news conference held on Thursday at a time when the people are flooding the social media with angry posts criticising poor drainage system of the capital city.

The residents of the capital woke up to streets underwater and then suffered in daylong traffic congestions on Wednesday after heavy overnight rains.   

In the afternoon on Wednesday, Mayor Khokon visited Manik Mia Avenue near Dhanmondi 27, one of the most affected areas hit by waterlogging.

Standing in knee-deep water, the mayor said it was 'basically' the WASA's job to resolve the issue, but the utility agency 'cannot be seen much at work'.

Asked for his reaction to the mayor's comments, WASA’s Khan said, "He has spoken about the misery of WASA. With due respect to the mayor, I want to say that he has every right to speak, but I don't agree with him. In plain word, this a 'flat answer' to his comments."

He also gave examples of the city corporation's involvement in water and sewerage management to back his claim that Khokon's comments were 'self-contradictory'.

"If the mandate (sic) is only of Dhaka WASA, then how did you carry out Tk 5 billion drainage work? Which mandate gave you that authority? Aren't your comments self-contradictory?" Khan asked Khokon.

According to the WASA managing director, the city corporation did 'most' of the swamp water drainage work. The city corporation laid 3,000-kilometre pipeline while the WASA installed only 360 to 370 kilometres, he said.

"Then who has more responsibilities?" he asked.

Khan admitted that the WASA bears more responsibilities in looking after the canals and box culverts. "We surely do everything in coordination. Some exceptions happen sometimes."

He also claimed Dhaka WASA was not 'less capable' than the water and sewerage authorities of the big cities like New Delhi, Karachi and Kathmandu.

Speaking about the problems in draining out the water clogging Dhaka, he pointed the finger at the lack of water bodies that should make up at least 12 percent of a city's total area.

"We have to pump the clogged water out. But it took more time on Wednesday because the pipes were already filled up," the MD said.

He said it took around one and a half hours to drain the water from Dhaka, but now it takes around three hours and in some areas, more than six hours.

"Even the ground floor of my house at Naya Paltan was inundated," he said.

Move to clear 2 drainage projects

LGRD Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain has said they would take steps ‘very soon’ to have the Planning Commission clear two water drainage projects aimed at freeing the capital of the watelogging problem.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday at the Secretariat, he said, “City corporation drains should be able to clear out water if it rains 40-50mm per hour. But excessive rainfall causes more pressure on the drainage system.

“This time the pressure was different. The water was not going to the rivers as the water levels of those were high. We couldn’t risk opening the riverside drains as it could’ve backfired and created a major crisis. The water stuck in different areas had to be pumped out.”

The minister admitted that ‘no one was prepared for this kind of uncharacteristic incessant rainfall’, but it contradicted the statement of the managing director of WASA, which is under the LGRD ministry.

Hossain said, “We will move soon to get the two water drainage projects currently at the Planning Commission cleared. We will deal with this as soon as possible.”

On Wednesday, the minister promised that Dhaka residents will not be subjected to “the unusual waterlogging” next monsoon.

His remarks had come at a time when the city was in shambles with rainwater flooding roads, worsening traffic jams.

Commuters had to wade through knee or waist-deep water throughout the day. Small accidents were reported on the roads undergoing construction.

Regarding his statement, the minister said, “Many are looking at this from different angles, thinking – is that a political statement? I am in politics, yes, I won’t deny it . But other than that, I am an engineer as well, an expert on this matter.

“I haven’t said anything without having any clear idea about the issue. There is no scope to see this differently. Next year, this problem will be no more because we’ll be prepared.”

Asked why no preparations were made to tackle waterlogging this time, Hossain said, “Yes. We couldn’t do that. We didn’t understand the importance of this issue because we never faced a situation like this in the past.”