Srinagar: Rains and Drains

As rains brought relief from the sweltering heat, the failure of our drainage system was again for everyone to see. Srinagar city, you may call it smart city, is so poorly managed in terms of drainage system that even a quick shower turns its roads into pools of water.

It has now been for many years that the problem is discussed in public spaces, and the media has been covering it regularly, but no worthwhile action has been taken till now. The project works undertaken under the smart city project had raised hopes that finally Srinagar will get an efficient drainage system, and the people living in this city would at last get rid off the troubles they face once it showers. But no, that was not to happen.

On a postcard this city might now look beautiful and attractive, but people don’t live on a postcard. People live on actual ground. And that ground is inundated once it rains for some good length of time. Unfortunately, we have been fed on computer graphics and large size hoardings. The mega display of pavements, cycling strips, special market areas, and riverside parks would make anyone think of Srinagar as a modern city with an efficient system of public amenities. But quite the contrary, this city is very poor when it comes to actual city planning.

The rains for last some days once again brought this point to surface that Srinagar needs a comprehensive planning, an efficient execution of the plans, and a real, workable systems that takes care of the needs of its people, and of those who visit this city. To this end there are some fundamental requirements. One, this city is not just a network of roads, aggregation of markets, public offices and other spaces. It is city that has a history, a culture and a texture of its own. It cannot be made smart by bringing in designs drawn somewhere else, without any regard to the living realities of this city.