Like every year, low lying area of Smart City finds itself submerged in rainwater; Citizens have witnessed drain blockades, floods into shops and vehicles stuck in water-logs as a report card of Smart City Port Blair

Port Blair, June 7: Despite efforts made by the Port Blair Municipal Council, the issue of waterlogging continues to plague the area almost every year, with citizens raising concern about the city's transformation into a smart city. This year too, a major area of the heart of the city Mohanpura & Aberdeen found itself submerged in rainwater due to water-logging after heavy rain of pre-monsoon.

The Port Blair Municipal Council and A&N Administration have been making plans and working tirelessly to earn a title of Smart City for Port Blair. But, the citizens have been shocked by the recent rainfall, which revealed the ground reality of the Smart City project and its works. Citizens say, the officials are preferred to manage by saying an obvious excuse that, "The reason behind the flood like situation and water-logging is heavy rainfall and high tide", but we unable to believe that is completely true. Many shopkeepers at Gandhi Market, Aberdeen and Mohanpura market areas bear the brunt of these flood-like situations and have suffered significant losses every time whenever any heavy rain falls. Furthermore, in the meantime at Bus Terminus (STS/Govt.) / Private Bus Stand from where all the buses start to proceed for various towns and villages in Andaman is also comes under flood affected area, which cause inconvenience for passengers to catch their buses, also become hurdle for State Transport Service (STS) to operate.

If authorities believed, 'dredging has been carried out in some major nallahs of Port Blair city on time and before its time, we tried out best no solution has been found for the persistent problem in the Mohanpura area'.

This situation gives a face-downing message to citizens and visitors as tourists about the mighty administration's ability to tackle the recurring problem, which will come again and again. It is the choice of Administration, where it intends to see itself.