Once more on flood control

The firm decision taken by the authorities to demolish all unauthorized structures abutting canals and their environs is a wise one indeed. Wednesday night’s deluge brought home the consequences of ignoring these illegal structures that stick out like a sore thumb marring the beauty of the city. That the riot act has been read by no less a personage than Disaster Management Minister AHM Fowzie who had hitherto been sympathetic to dwellers in these illegal structures shows the critical point that problem had reached.

Previously floods were confined only to certain areas in Colombo but today the entire city gets converted into a veritable lake as was witnessed on Wednesday. Office staff who went to their work places the following day had to return home as office buildings were several feet under water. At least one leading school had to postpone a schedule exam due to their premises being flooded. But the most telling effect of the floods were witnessed in Parliament where MPs had to be ferried in boats to the August Assembly. This shows the upheavals that could be caused by a couple of hours of heavy rains in the city where floods could cause all mayhem.

According to our lead story yesterday the authorities had cleared several illegal structures during the weekend. They also conducted a special Shramadana in the Colombo area to clean canals and drains. How come these clearing jobs are done only after the havoc is caused? What was CMC doing? Isn’t it the duty of the CMC to attend to this task on a daily basis? Today the premier local body of the country has been reduced to a sleeping giant.

It is time that the administration of the capital city is vested in an Authority with sweeping powers which could get the wheels moving and provide a more dynamic service to the public. An immediate solution awaits the garbage problem which is a cause for the aggravation of floods in the city. Needless to say the derelict sewerage system which is of colonial vintage has to be ripped off from its bowels and replaced with a modern network that could withstand the rigours imposed by an overwhelmingly large population, overcrowding of buildings. Hotels, eateries and establishments that has turned this once garden city into an asphalt jungle.

The flood problem cannot be tackled in isolation. There needs to be a holistic planning. First and foremost there is a need to make the Colombo city less claustrophobic. Today at any given time there is a floating population of over one million people in metropolitan Colombo alone. The recent migration from the North and East has aggravated the situation.

As a result the city is bursting at the seams with inadequate infrastructure to meet the expanding population. Drains and waterways are clogged with waste disposals from hotels, eateries and factories. Illegal constructions have left no room for the draining of flood waters. The indiscriminate filling of land for construction has led to the disappearance of the few watersheds that were left in the city causing it to go underwater at the slightest downpour. Add to this is the unplanned constructions and the clearing of marshy lands to build new roads and expressways that has resulted in flooding even in the once safe areas.

It is time the authorities get their act together and restore Colombo to a city that deserves its status as the country’s capital. This needs a lot of foresight and bold decisions. The city needs a complete overhaul and for this to take place massive changes needs to be effected. Some of these changes will not be popular ones.

But the authorities need to stand firm. Shanties which contribute in no small ways to floods would have to be replaced with appropriate housing while the many commercial establishments and edifices too would need to be relocated. It is heartening to note that these relocations are already taking place with some well-known Government establishments and administrative buildings billed to be shifted elsewhere. The sooner this task is accomplished the faster the job to transform the Colombo city could be achieved.

Sri Lanka has entered a new phase in its post independence history with the defeat of terrorism and a return to peace giving birth to a resurgent nation. Therefore it is only appropriate that the country’s commercial capital be given pride of place and elevated to the top. In this endeavour no stone should be left unturned to convert Colombo to match and compete with the best capitals in the world befitting the country’s new status and as part of the President’s dream to make Sri Lanka Asia’s wonder.