Kolkata, June 8 -- With the monsoon expected to reach West Bengal shortly, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on Monday stepped up preparations to tackle waterlogging and other seasonal civic challenges by convening a high-level borough-wise pre-monsoon review meeting, even as the exercise was marked by the absence of several Trinamool Congress councillors.

The meeting, covering Boroughs I to VII, was aimed at ensuring the city is better prepared for heavy rainfall, which routinely inundates several parts of Kolkata, disrupting traffic, affecting daily life and creating safety hazards for residents. Civic officials reviewed measures relating to drainage, road repairs and other essential services to minimise monsoon-related hardships.

The exercise follows a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on June 3, during which directions were issued to strengthen preparedness ahead of the rainy season. KMC's initiative sought to translate those directives into ward-level action by bringing together elected representatives and civic engineers on a common platform. The MLAs from seven Assembly constituencies - Chowringhee, Entally, Beleghata, Jorasanko, Shyampukur, Maniktala and Kashipur-Belgachia - were invited to participate, along with councillors representing Wards 1 to 59. However, several TMC councillors did not attend the meeting. Deputy Mayor Atin Ghosh was also absent.

The meeting took place against the backdrop of continuing political uncertainty within the city's ruling establishment. Coincidentally, former Mayor Firhad Hakim, who recently resigned from the post, was seen meeting rebel TMC leader Ritabrata Banerjee at his chamber in the Assembly premises, fuelling speculation about shifting political alignments amid the ongoing turmoil within the party.

Senior officials from the Drainage and Sewerage, Water Supply, Lighting, Roads and Solid Waste Management departments, along with the KMC-SHARP Project Director, Borough Executive Engineers and other senior civic functionaries, attended the review.

According to civic sources, particular emphasis was placed on the readiness of pumping stations, desilting of drains and sewer networks, and the identification of chronic waterlogging hotspots, damaged roads, overflowing manholes and electrical safety risks before the onset of heavy rains.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.