Nagpur: The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has finally begun reconstructing the damaged retaining wall along Nag River behind LAD College, but the long-delayed exercise has sparked fresh concerns. The contractor executing the work has dumped excavated earth inside the river channel, substantially reducing its carrying capacity just as the monsoon is about to set in.
The irony is hard to miss. On June 15, NMC wrapped up its two-month cleanliness drive along the Nag, Pili and Pora rivers, launched in April under directions of municipal commissioner Vipin Itankar to improve river flow and minimise flooding risks before monsoon. Days after the deadline ended, another wing of the civic body narrowed a stretch of the Nag River by using it as a temporary dumping ground.
A TOI visit to the site behind LAD College near Shankar Nagar Square on Thursday found mounds of soil occupying almost the entire width of the river. Workers were laying reinforcement steel and preparing the foundation for the new retaining wall, while the excavated material remained piled in the middle of the channel, leaving only a narrow passage for water. The original retaining wall had collapsed during the catastrophic September 2023 floods, triggered by the release of water from Ambazari dam and the overflowing Nag River. The flash floods inundated several low-lying localities, including those near Ambazari Lake, Daga Layout, Corporation Colony and Shankar Nagar, damaging homes and exposing vulnerable stretches along the riverbank.
Residents questioned why the reconstruction was taken up only weeks before the onset of monsoon, and why the riverbed itself was chosen for storing excavated material that narrowed the flow. They fear even a moderate spell of rain could cause water to back up upstream and result in waterlogging in residential areas.
A senior NMC public works department official acknowledged that the reconstruction had started recently and admitted that the excavated soil was kept temporarily in the channel to facilitate the work. "We will start removing it soon, and river flow will not remain obstructed," the official said.
For residents who endured the 2023 floods, a flood-mitigation project itself restricting river flow at the onset of monsoon raises uncomfortable questions about planning, timing and coordination within the civic administration, nearly 33 months after the disaster.
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About the Author
Proshun Chakraborty
Proshun Chakraborty is a seasoned journalist with over 25 years of experience in civic and urban affairs reporting. Currently Editor-Civic Affairs at The Times of India, Nagpur, he leads coverage on municipal governance, public infrastructure, traffic management, RTO affairs, and urban policy shifts. Proshun has built a trusted network across citizens, bureaucracy and political landscape. He is highly respected for his depth in civic journalism and unwavering commitment to public interest reporting. His hobbies include reading, listening to music and travelling.
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