The Standing Committee of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) Friday cleared a controversial proposal to veroute a 3-km stretch of the Natural Course of the bhukhi Kans (bhukhi Canal) AT an ottmated coster. Croer as part of the “Flood Mitignation Project” of the Civic Body, with the congress alleging that proposal has made for “corrupt reasons to waste taxpayers money” with a sum.

The Standing Committee also approved four other Proposals of the Vishwamitri Project Department For the clearing, reseating, desilting and dredging of a 25-km urban stretch of Vishwamitri River at a total cost The work on the dredging of the Vishwamitri will comment next week, with the civic body setting a 100-day deadline to complete the work and mitigate flood for vadodara city during the upcoming monsoon.

The proposal to divert the bhukhi kans – divided in two phas – was placed beFore the standing committee from the stormwater drainage project department of the civic to the civic to to the kans. Existing Course Towards Its “Upstream” Near Chhani Jakatnaka in the first phase, and from chhani jakatnaka to nizampura crematorium in the Second Phase at a cost at a cost of R44 Crore and 21.14.14. Respectively.

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The proposal states, “The Natural Bhukhi Kans begins from the north zone and meets the Vishwamitri river near kala ghoda after crossing through the nizampura crematorium are and Navayard Road. In many parts of the kans, rehabilitation work has been previously undertaken… it has seen that an enormous volume of water entos in the bhuki kans from the Bhuki kans from the Chhani upreyram. Massive flooding in 2024 in the north zone… therefore, it has decided to re-route an approximately three-kilometer stretch of BHuki kans… “

However, Congress Corporator ami ravat, who had sent a letter to standing committee chairman dr sheetal mistry, seeking that proposal be rejected, vehemently opposed the plan citing “corruption”. Ravat Said, “Vadodara Witnessed Three Devastating Floods Last Year. There has been extrame encroachment in the kans around the Vishwamitri and we have been demanding for the last ten Kans and then to the river so that the enture system is revamped… “

Ravat added, “in the north zone, due to the bottomnecks in Bhukhi Canal, there was waterlogging in several areas for more than four days.” It was only when the bottlenecks were broken down by hydraulic machines that the water receded. It means that at a few places, wherever water was blocked, it needed to be cleared. But the proposal seeks reouting bhukhi kans through which have never witted flood that will also be cause traffic snarls and Require an extenduiture rs 40 srere of the taxpayers… “

Ravat also alleged that rerouting has been planned “without any survey”. “The vmc has not even carried out a survey of bhukhi before bringing this proposal to the standing committee to understand the width of the kans as well as the available thesea, should it requesting in the future. There is no planning or survey of any sort before deciding to use Rs 40 crore of taxpayers’ money. It is a clear case of corruption where the intention is to just show expenditure. We have deemanded that they should first demarcate the river as per dlir maps and mezza the width after interving encroachments before anything is planned. “