Cuttack: Heavy rain Monday afternoon left large swathes of the city waterlogged with filthy drain water overflowing onto streets and entering homes. The Cuttack Municipal Corporation got the flak for poor maintenance of drains and not taking up desiltation work before the rains.

A long stretch from Shiba Temple to Kesharpur was submerged in Friends Colony, one of the worst-hit localities. "We face this situation every monsoon. Today's rain has resulted in knee-deep water. Children cannot step out of the house and vehicles are stranded," said Laju Pani, a resident of Friends' Colony. The road leading to Chandi Mandir and Rovers's Street resembled a canal. "Our ground floor is flooded with filthy water from the drains.

My children can't even go to the bathroom without stepping into this muck," said Namita Sahoo, a resident of Rovers' Street. She said though residents have complained multiple times, the authorities have been able to provide a proper solution so far. "CMC should have cleaned the drains before monsoon.

Now, we are left to suffer," she said. Khannagar's Ranamaa Temple stretch to Mohanty Sahi was also waterlogged with overflowing sewarage water.

"It's not just rainwater it's filth. The stench is unbearable. It's shocking to see the authorities are least concerned about our plight and no one from CMC is visiting the spot despite several complaints," said Sangeeta Mohanty, a resident of Mohanty Sahi. She alleged that desilting and drain cleaning haven't been attended to.

Admitting to the precarious situation, Cuttack mayor Subhash Singh said, "Unexpected heavy showers have caused waterlogging. We have deployed 150 pumps and sanitation workers. Long-term drainage reform plans are in the pipeline. We are monitoring vulnerable zones and clearing choked drains to avoid further inconvenience."