City Suffers Due to Dilemma of Development

Monsoon season is around the corner in Pakistan and all provincial governments are planning in advance to mitigate the after affects and curb the intensity of damage caused by torrential rains. However, the Punjab government seems to be appalled even after taking several measures in name of monsoon management just due to the ongoing development work across Punjab and especially in Lahore. Dug up sewers along with the under construction development projects in Lahore are jeopardizing the monsoon management.

If we believe in Metrological Department' s forecasts, we must expect far more than average rains this monsoon season but due to the development work undergoing in the city, there is a high risk of complete urban flooding in the area. Multan Road is the best place to see the worst nightmare come true as both sewerage and drainage pipes have been dug up on the route of Orange Line Metro Train project.

And to see the intensity of the damage, you need not to wait for the entire monsoon season but there has been only one rainfall and you will see the damages, it has done. There is thick mud all over the place and water will be accumulated in all the dug up areas. Oblivious to the monsoon hazards, the supervisor of the project has displayed a totally different picture. He cited that all the benefits of the project will be revealed after the completion of the project.

He also stated, "We have been working on this project for the last six months and in another few months, we will be done with it. 90 percent of the piling has been complete, 50 percent pile shafts and 70 percent of the pile caps have been installed. New sewerage lines will be in place in the next few weeks to deal with the upcoming monsoon situation."

Certainly, we cannot do anything to stop rain or to mitigate it' s after affects and this is for sure that for now, residents will obviously be facing issues due to rainwater and all the undergoing construction but once the project will be completed, it will prove to be much fruitful.

However, it' s not just about the dug up sewers and incomplete construction – there are countless puddles of water and hours of traffic jams, which has made it difficult for the pedestrians.

After reading all about the current happenings in the city, what kinds of preventive measures do you suggest to the government to lessen the monsoon affects?