Mala Mahalanabis

Mala Mahalanabis, Trinamul Congress councillor of Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) ward no. 92, met readers of The Telegraph to answer their queries. Participants included Partha Chatterjee, Dipankar Chatterjee, Barun Ghosh, Ranjit Sengupta, Paresh Chakraborty, Shyamal Bose, Sanatan Mondal and Ruma Chatterjee

Barun Ghosh: Water is scarce. Does the CMC have any plans to boost supply?

There is a water crisis in the ward. We already have 14 deep tubewells but residents are demanding piped filtered water. The problem is the low pressure in the piped supply. The pressure can be increased only after the booster station at Kasba turns operational. We had planned to set up a small booster station here, but didn’t have a suitable spot. Some deep tubewell projects, too, were stalled for want of space. The population in the ward has increased three-fold over the past three years. At present, about 1.5 lakh people live in it.

Ranjit Sengupta: Beautification schemes are being implemented in several wards of the CMC. What about ours?

We have taken up several projects to beautify the ward. One of the major schemes was developing the Beni Banerjee Avenue area of Dhakuria. We focussed on this particular spot because notable personalities, like author Gajendra Kumar Mitra, have lived here. There have been a few other beautification schemes, too. We will develop a park at Adarshanagar, in Selimpur. There is a pond at Shahidnagar that was revamped with financial assistance from the local MLA. Some initiatives are being taken to beautify Jheel Road. These apart, a children’s park is coming up at Tarupukur.

Shyamal Bose: There are fewer open drains now, but the problem of mosquitoes persists.

That problem can be solved only after all the drains of the area are covered. That will require Rs 1 crore and we don’t have that kind of money. Many drains in Shahidnagar Colony are still open. These are breeding grounds for mosquitoes. However, our emphasis is on the sewerage system, so that the water flow can flush out the mosquito larvae from the drains.

Ruma Chatterjee: Dhakuria bus stand has turned into a criminal hub.

We are aware of the criminal activities under Dhakuria bridge and have taken up the matter with the local police. Strictly speaking, as this is not a civic problem, we have to depend on the police entirely for its redress. We had a plan to arrange for more streetlights in the area to check criminal activities, like drug peddling and bootlegging. We also plan to construct a pay-and-use toilet under Dhakuria bridge very soon. The project has been approved by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and will be ready by 2004.

Partha Chatterjee: Streetlights have been installed in the entire ward except at Rail Colony, Babubagan.

According to my estimates, only two to three per cent of the ward is yet to be lit up. The main problem we are facing is that of funds. We will seek money from the ADB for this.

Dipankar Chatterjee : Some of the roads are in very bad shape.

Repairs have already started. We are also taking up the repair of the entire Gariahat Road (South). All the roads will be covered with mastic asphalt. Roads that need minor repairs will be coated with hotmix. These roads have not been repaired since 1992.

Paresh Chakraborty: The ward needs a big market complex.

True. But we have one at Dhakuria, adjacent to our ward. There are no immediate plans for a municipal market here.

Sanatan Mondal: There are many open vats in the area that emit an unbearable stench.

We have four vats to take care of the garbage of our ward. The master vat, located off the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass, is cleared every day. Yes, the stench is a problem. We plan to replace the vats with covered containers that can be cleaned easily. You see, the vats are cleaned manually, and some garbage always stays behind to rot and stink. Covered containers will take care of that problem.