The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has mandated drainage approval for buildings along EM Bypass following the recent flooding in the city after heavy rainfall. Though this rule will also be applicable for the construction of housing projects in the city proper, the civic body has decided to keep a special vigil on areas off Bypass, including Nayabad, Mukundapur and Panchasayar, and other added areas such as Behala and Joka. Vast stretches along the EM Bypass have barely any drainage infrastructure, a perennial problem that often floods areas like Nayabad, Madurdaha, Panchasayar, Mukundapur, and parts of Patuli. Likewise, stretches of Joka and Behala are no different where stormwater remained stagnant for over 72 hours. After getting to know about the difficult conditions of residents of some stretches off Bypass, the chairman of the KMC Board of Administrators, Firhad Hakim, took up the matter with the civic drainage department officials. After discussion, it was decided that in case of fresh approval of building plans for a specific area situated off EM Bypass, the civic body’s buildings department, henceforth, will refer the issue to the drainage department engineers. The latter will first examine the site to decide whether the locality is equipped to manage additional load before giving approval to the buildings department. On Saturday, Hakim told the media that the development of high-rises or large housing projects along the vast stretches off Bypass has done much damage to the drainage network by concretising hundreds of acres of land that played a significant role in providing a natural drainage network to the residents. A KMC buildings department official told the media that they would strictly check whether construction of a high-rise or a complex can be allowed in a specific neighbourhood along Bypass or Behala depending on its drainage capacity. Image SourceAlso read: GHMC to acquire 260 properties for stormwater drains in Hyderabad