‘Roads Near My Home in Loni's Indrapuri Become Swimming Pools During Rains’

Indirapuri residents have asked Nagar Palika Loni for a solution several times, but in vain.

Visuals of waterlogged Indrapuri in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad. 

(Photo: Indirapuri RWA/Aroop Mishra/The Quint)

It was always interesting to see residential buildings and complexes with amenities like a club centre, a gym, and even a swimming pool. Luckily for those like us, who live in Indrapuri in Loni, Ghaziabad, homes and roads become swimming pools whenever it rains.

My sarcasm aside, residents here have been living in a miserable state since the monsoon started, and such is the condition every year. Clogged drains, sewage on the roads, muddy pathways and wet home floors are a common sight. It has been 20 years since I have been living here, and things got worse as time passed.

Despite being a DDA-approved colony, there is no development in the area.

The saddest part is that Nagar Palika Loni, the municipal corporation under whose jurisdiction our colony is, never acts on our complaints.

Residents use an inflatable boat on the road amid heavy rain. Photo from 19 July. 

Water logged streets on 27 July 2021. 

The matter, hence, is not only of negligence but indifference. It is shocking that repeated calls, mails, and letters to the municipal corporation fall on deaf ears. Drains are not cleaned regularly and mosquitoes breed in stagnant water during this time, raising alarm for other diseases. If funds are sanctioned for the development of this area, where does the money go if not being used for the betterment of its people?

Frustrated with the authorities in Loni, on 27 July, we staged protest by putting posters outside our homes that said 'No Work, No Vote'.

(Photo Courtesy: RWA Inderpuri)

(Photo Courtesy: RWA Indrapuri) 

(Photo Courtesy: RWA Indrapuri) 

Some residents stood in knee-deep water in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Park to register their protest. Water from the road was overflowing into this colony park.

The Residents’ Welfare Association has, on multiple occasions, tried to discuss the issues being faced by the people here. While officials would listen sometimes, they only make empty promises in return.

It is perhaps the chocked nullah on Saharanpur Road that troubles us most, as its flow is interrupted due to sewage and waste. During their visit to the site on 23 July, we requested the Sub District Magistrate and the Executive Officer to help us in creating a passageway there to end the problem of waterlogging. On 4 August, via a written notice, the municipal corporation informed us that the concerned body will clean the drain and ensure proper flow, so that rain water can drain out (The Quint has accessed this document).

We await the day this becomes a reality.

(The phone number of Executive Officer, Nagar Palika Loni, has been switched off since 4 August. The Quint has reached out to the municipal corporation via mail. The response will be added when received.)

(The author wishes to stay anonymous. All 'My Report' branded stories are submitted by citizen journalists to The Quint. Though The Quint inquires into the claims/allegations from all parties before publishing, the report and the views expressed above are the citizen journalist's own. The Quint neither endorses, nor is responsible for the same.)