Story by Victor Seow
Pix by Shum Jian Wei
EXCO member for Town & Country Planning and Housing Jagdeep Singh Deo visited the flood prone Kuantan Road on Sept 18.
Residents in the area have been facing flood problems for some time and Jagdeep not only listened to their grouses but also personally inspected the nearby source of the problem itself.
Accompanying him were Komtar assemblymember Teh Lai Heng and officers from the Penang Island City Council (MBPP).
Jagdeep assured the local residents that the council had identified the root cause of the problem and that remedial measures are being taken to solve their woes.
“The residents here have complained to me that recently Kuantan Road floods easily despite a mere drizzle. I have personally written to the MBPP to monitor the situation here and the council has identified the root cause of this problem. MBPP has also conveyed this to the complainant in a letter dated Sept 3,” Jagdeep told members of the media.
According to the letter, Kuantan Road is situated in a low lying area and a back flow effect occurs during high tide at Sungai Pinang.
As a result, the water flows inwards instead of towards the sea and floods the area as the drainage system at Kuantan Road is ill-equipped to cope with this.
To rectify this problem, the MBPP had put forward a condition to the developer of the state’s affordable housing project at Jalan S.P. Chelliah, Zubicon Sdn Bhd, to upgrade the existing drainage system that borders Kuantan Road as well as enlarge the existing monsoon drain to a width of 3m.
The widening work is currently being undertaken by the said developer.
Also present during Jagdeep’s inspection visit were the complainant Tan Tean Cheng, Kuantan Road Traders Market Association president Khoo Saw Ean and her committee members Tay Seng Hock and Tan Chim Poh and Zubicon represented by its project planner Lim Bee Kee.
“I have also instructed MBPP to clean the drains as we can see the water does not seem to be flowing. Apart from contributing to floods, this is also a dengue hazard,” added Jagdeep.
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