Environment activist Dr Wayne Kublalsingh is calling on State authorities to step in and clean a clogged drain which is posing a health risk to a Debe family.
Kublalsingh said he had not taken “strong action” earlier because he was hopeful that the authorities would have rectified the problem.
Homeowner Tara Sharma, 68, who lives with husband, Rajendra, 58, and her 76-year-old mother-in-law said the drain, which runs to the side of her home at SS Erin Road, has been clogged for years.
“Since last year we get flood every time a slight drizzle of rain falls, the whole place flooding,” she said. The drain overflows and floods the yard leaving a pool of stagnant water.
Sharma said the situation got worse in February when the water became discoloured and putrid.
“We saw all the fishes dying out, floating all over the place because the water became black and stink, poisonous,” she said.
Sharma said they made several reports to the Penal/Debe Regional Corporation but they were told the drain fell within Works and Transport Ministry remit.
She said she spoke with Works Minister Rohan Sinanan who promised to send someone to investigate whether the drain fell under the ministry or corporation.
Sharma said, “The drain running next to our house. It is totally clogged about three feet of mud and slush...Saturday was the worst when the rain fall the place start to stink smell bad I instantly get a pain and my pressure went up.”
She said they also wrote to the health department, but no one has “life one finger to do anything.”
Kublalsingh said if the problem was not fixed in a week he will clean the drain.
“Next Sunday, I will be bringing a crew to start to rectify this problem and I hope when I come down here with my crew and start cleaning up the gully which is causing the problem, it is a gully which is crossing the road and backing up the water, it’s not been cleaned for five years, no police come and arrest Kublalsingh and say I am creating a public disturbance.”
Corporation chairman Dr Allen Sammy said he wrote to Sinanan about two weeks ago requesting his help as he was advised that the drain falls within his ministry.
“I also advised Dr Kublalsingh of this twice in the past. Everyone is now berating local government agencies for work which should be done by other ministries. A recent example is a former minister bashing me for not fixing a road which belongs to the HDC and repairing a driveway crossing belonging to Works. He doesn’t care who it belongs to, I must fix it.”
When contacted Sinanan said he spoke with Sharma and advised her that someone would look into it immediately after Easter.
