‘My room was waterlogged, couldn’t sleep for two days’
LUCKNOW :Last week’s incessant rain was a nightmare for a 13-year-old boy and others in Faizullahganj area of the state capital. Neither the memories of water entering his room, nor the stench all around has gone away for the boy.
“On Thursday afternoon, water entered our courtyard. By the evening, all rooms were waterlogged. It was no less than a nightmare to live in a waterlogged house,” recalled the boy, Ankit Kumar Singh. He is a class 8 student of a local government school.
The situation arose as the water level of the Gomti river rose due to heavy rain lashing the city on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Lack of proper drainage made matters worse.
“I could not sleep for two days as there was water and stench all around,” he said, adding, “This is normal during the monsoon.” Jaglal Yadav of the same locality said, “The water has receded now but we have to live in this stinking
› It has become a habit now. This is the story every monsoon. We do not have an option. Otherwise we would have gone to some other place AK OJHA, resident of Azadnagar
atmosphere… under the threat of malaria and dengue. Recently, four people of our locality tested positive for malaria.”The experience of people in other localities was not much different.
AK Ojha, resident of Azadnagar, said, “We were forced to remain indoors. It has become a habit now. This is the story every monsoon. We do not have an option. Otherwise we would have gone to some other place, at least when it rains.”
In Patelnagar, rainwater flowed into well-constructed houses.
“Since the drains were choked, pumping water out of the premises was no solution. We had to remain indoors and sleep in the waterlogged house for at least a night,” said Sarla Gupta, a Patelnagar resident.