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Rains, waterlogging continue to wreak havoc

By Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, June 23 � Continuous rain since last night continued to give the citizens a harrowing time, with many areas reeling under water for the second day today.

With weatherman predicting more rains in the days ahead � and the city�s defunct drainage laid bare by the showers � it is unlikely that respite is in store for the residents of the capital city.

The entire day witnessed intermittent drizzle today, making it difficult for citizens to venture out � something testified to by the low volume of vehicular traffic seen in the city today. Many roads, lanes and by-lanes continued to be under water.

The only silver lining has been the sudden dip in temperature, as the city had been reeling under sweltering heat for several days prior to the deluge.

Rain-induced woes of the citizens have shown little signs of abatement in recent years even as the government keeps spending crores of rupees in the name of improving the city�s drainage system.

The disturbing developments also lay bare the insensitivity of the authorities concerned towards the preservation and protection of the forested hills and wetlands of the city.

According to experts, the degradation of the forested hills and the wetlands has a direct bearing on the maintenance of civic amenities such as drainage. Unless the ecosystem of the hills and wetlands is preserved, it would be impossible to put in place an effective drainage for the city. The degraded and loose topsoil of the city hills are fast losing their water retention, and similarly, the shrinking wetlands � the natural stormwater reservoirs � too are no longer in a position to store huge volumes of water as they used to do two-three decades back.

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