Waterlogging due to heavy rains brings country's GDP to standstill, says Survey

Heavy rains lashed Delhi on Wednesday, which brought people's lives to a standstill in the city. 

A recent survey says that waterlogging due to rains not only causes traffic snarls on roads but also brings the country's GDP to a "standstill" as people get stuck in jam for hours, losing productive work hours. 

As per the citizen engagement platform LocalCircles, 78 per cent Delhi citizens claimed that they lost most time due to waterlogging, leading to loss in work hours. 

This was followed by 68 per cent in Chennai, 66 per cent in Mumbai and 58 per cent in Bengaluru, says the survey conducted across the metro cities to understand the extent of the problem. 

The government needs to realise that waterlogging has a direct impact on GDP and GSDP, it added. 

Every city has lakhs of commuters whose work life is hampered due to this waterlogging, LocalCircles said adding that in some of the cities like Bengaluru, the menace affects the software industry badly. 

"With white and blue collar workers stuck in traffic it is as if the whole GDP of the country has come to a standstill during this period," it said. 

Seeking government attention towards the problem, LocalCircles said, "Such a massive disruption of work life of citizens due to mismanagement means that a much more integrated approach from the central government is needed on this issue." 

Some of the solutions proposed by the citizens to address the waterlogging issue include ban on polythene bags, filling of pot holes, repairing of broken pumps in subways and underpasses and ban on throwing garbage in the drains, among others. 

(With PTI inputs)