Forty-eight hours of heavy rain undid the Amdavad Municipal Corporation’s (AMC) ₹35 crore pre-monsoon plan, leaving large swathes of the city under water.

Vijay Patel from the AMC’s water department told Gujarat Samachar that catchpits and manholes are cleaned from April to June each year. Additional cleaning is carried out during the monsoon as required, he said. 

This year, AMC claimed to have cleaned 63,000 catchpits in three rounds. 

However, the city was left floundering after receiving more than 3 inches of rain in the 24 hours ending 6 am on Aug 26.

Eight underpasses were closed on Aug 26 due to waterlogging: 

1. Akhbar Nagar

2. Mithakali

3. Usmanpura

4. Sayona, Chandlodiya

5. Parimal

6. Makarba

7. Shahibaug

8. Dakshini, Maninagar

Dakshini and Sayona were not reopened until the afternoon of Aug 27. 

Meanwhile, the Vaishno Devi-Zundal underpass turned into a “waterfall” with rainwater pouring out of crevices, according to videos on social media. As of Aug 28, officials say it will likely remain shut for two–three days. 

All of which begs the question, what exactly did AMC’s ₹35 crore expenditure cover? 

Also read:

Ahmedabad struggles with continuous rainfall; major flooding hits Gujarat