Koramangala: Piped to imperfection!

BENGALURU: Koramangala is considered one of the most sought-after residential localities in the city. It has a perfect blend of posh bungalows, residential apartments and commercial units. But the residents of Koramangala 7th block are facing major problems as manholes in the locality now overflow on every alternate day.

Nagesh, a resident of the 1st Main, Koramangala 7th block, pointed out, “There are lots of hotels and food units in the locality, especially on the 1st main road. The already-small sewage pipes in the area are being overburdened as these food units do not bother to remove kitchen waste like leftover food, vegetable skins, wrapping  paper and tissues.”

More shocking, “When the civic workers clean the manholes and desilt them, they have even found spoons and small cups. So how can we expect the already-small sewer pipes not to get blocked when all these things are carelessly allowed to get into the sewer pipes ?” Mr Nagesh questioned. He added, “In a week we find the manholes overflowing twice or thrice!”

When we spoke to some of the restaurant owners  in the area, like Ashwin Dewan, who runs a chicken momo and sandwich center, they disclaimed responsibility. He said: “Not all food units which are in the area should be blamed for the blockage of sewer pipes and manholes. At our center, we collect all the solid waste including tissues and hand them over to the designated garbage contractor.”

He went on that only some food joints who are were careless with their kitchen waste, were causing all the food joints to be blamed. It was time officials gave surprise visits and fined those who were at fault, Ashwin added.

“The overflowing manholes can lead to many health issues. Those with compromised immunity can fall sick. Every time the manholes are blocked, officials come and clear it. Why aren't they realizing that the overflow is due to the old, small pipes,” questioned Manjula, a home-maker, who felt officials were not getting to the root of the problem.

She further suggested that instead of merely clearing the blockages every time, measures must be taken to replace the smaller sewer pipes with bigger ones which will solve the problem once and for all.

Planning to replace the old pipes with new ones: Channaveeraiah
DC speaks to Assistant Executive Engineer of Adugodi ward Mr Channaveeraiah. Excerpts.

Residents of 7th block, 1st main Koramangala, complain of overflowing sewage every alternate day..
The area falls under old Bengaluru. Due to the sudden vertical growth in the area, the old sewage pipes are overburdened and the manholes leak  as a result.

What has been done about it?
At the coordination meeting, where officials from all departments including BBMP, BESCOM, BWSSB were present, the problem of overflowing of manholes was discussed. We are planning to replace the old, 6-inch sewer pipes with 9-inch ones.

Residents complain that the manholes overflow every other day due to the food outlets which let their food waste into the pipes…
Yes, there’s a particular stretch which is full of food outlets and the pipes get jammed many times, mostly due to these outlets dumping their kitchen waste, which end up blocking the pipes. If the hoteliers and residents understand that the drainage pipes are getting blocked due to the kitchen waste, then half  the problem will be solved.