An ugly case of civic negligence has come out of Oghadnagar, in the Junagadh district of Gujarat, where an uncovered roadside drain hidden beneath rainwater has caused a number of accidents.
CCTV footage of the incidents has gone online, showing unsuspecting pedestrians and motorists falling into the open drain after light rainfall left the road waterlogged. Residents are angry that the city did not take any action at all on basic public safety issues in a time of monsoon season.
The drain had been left uncovered for a long time, said local residents. As the road flooded, water poured over the road and covered the open drain underneath. It was so flooded it was almost impossible for people and two-wheeler riders to see the danger at the time of the flood.
One of the CCTV images shows a woman walking along the road with her children. Not aware of the submerged drain, she steps into it and falls. Residents of nearby houses rushed to the scene and pulled her out in a hurry before any serious harm could happen.
In another incident filmed by the surveillance camera, a motorcyclist rides over the same waterlogged stretch. As the bike crosses the hidden drain, the rider loses balance and falls into the opening. Locals intervened again and rescued the motorcyclist from the drain.
Fortunately, in both cases there were no serious injuries. But residents say the accidents could have been fatal if children, older people, or vehicles travelling at higher speeds had been involved.
The incidents rekindle questions about the effectiveness of the city’s pre-monsoon preparedness and maintenance work. Residents say that when the drain was opened, the city did not put up a cover or warning signs around the dangerous area.
All these days when the monsoon season has started in Gujarat, people have demanded municipal officials cover the drain, improve drainage infrastructure, and check other vulnerable places to prevent such accidents.
The viral CCTV footage has also revived a wider debate on urban infrastructure and monsoon preparedness, and residents are demanding that authorities take on the backlog of city work to try to avoid loss of life by accident and to build a community and build a better city.
