Rain refugees

BANGALORE: JP Nagar V Phase: Houses are locked up, several residents are moving out. And if you are wondering whether this area has been hit by plague, you can be forgiven.
For the problem is nothing short of the plague: Sewage flooding into homes!
Fed up with dirty water swirling through their homes and dangerous open drains/ dug-up roads just outside, residents of this area have become 'rain refugees'.Though in the heart of hi-tech Bangalore, they have had to abandon their homes and relocate to other places. The problem is, these areas are prone to constant flooding during monsoon. The residents' routine: pump out sullage-mixed rainwater from their houses, and prepare for the next day's rain bout.
Most houses on Kapila Road, Bora School Road, 20th Main SMS Layout, Cauvery Road, Godavari Road are already deserted. The latest to move out is Fakruddin, a building contractor: he has locked his house and rented an apartment in another area. Over 50 families have shifted till now. And all of them are tired of making innumerable trips to government offices pouring out their woes. Residents blame Brihat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike and Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board for the mess. The authorities dug up roads for drains and left the work incomplete for two years now.
"It is a curse to live here. I realised the severity of the problem during last week's rain. I decided to shift as soon as possible. I don't see any hope here," says Fakruddin. His house is bang in front of an open drain. Echoing Fakruddin, Lok Ayukta inspector Ashwathnarayana says: "I couldn't live there anymore. We have petitioned the BBMP commissioner, area MLA, ministries concerned, corporators and engineers. I gave up and shifted from Kapila Road to Koramangala recently. My son has jaundice thanks to the unhygienic conditions there. We have been putting up with this problem for a decade. I couldn't risk the lives of my octogenarian-parents, and my family. I was left with no option but to relocate."
During rain, houses are inundated with water standing at four to five feet. Asbestos sheets have turned makeshift bridges to move from one house to another, while vehicles can't even enter the area.
"I shifted from the area last November. I now live in Basavanagudi. But I am paying an EMI (equated monthly instalment) of Rs 20,000 against the loan I have taken for the house I abandoned," fumes Subhashraj, a bank executive. When contacted, Bhaskar, BBMP ward engineer, gave a routine reply: "There is a masterplan to re-do the entire road and drain network. We have invited tenders for the works."
So guess what the main road in SMS Layout — today an open drain — is called: 'Mori Beedhi' (drain road)!