Parliament Question: Urban flooding and drainage crisis in Patna city

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 232 ANSWERED ON 02/02/2026 URBAN FLOODING AND DRAINAGE CRISIS IN PATNA CITY

232. SHRI AKHILESH PRASAD SINGH:

Will the Minister of HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) whether urban local bodies in Patna are facing recurring problems of waterlogging and urban flooding during monsoon due to inadequate drainage infrastructure and Ganga river backflow;

(b) whether any comprehensive drainage and flood mitigation project has been sanctioned for Patna under AMRUT, Smart Cities Mission or any other Central Scheme;

(c) the funds released and works completed so far for stormwater drainage in Patna during the last five years; and

(d) the steps taken to ensure long-term, climate-resilient urban infrastructure for flood-prone cities in the State of Bihar? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS (SHRI TOKHAN SAHU)

(a) to (d): Management of urban flooding falls under the purview of the State Governments and the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)/ Urban Development Authorities including ULBs in Patna, who are responsible for maintaining the drainage and sewerage system. Government of India supplements the efforts of the States through schematic interventions/ advisories. It provides financial and technical support to the States to strengthen Urban Planning ecosystem.

Usually, increased incidence of high intensity rainfall in short duration is mainly responsible for urban floods, which is further compounded by unplanned growth, encroachment of natural water bodies, inadequate sewer systems, inadequate rainwater drainage systems, encroachments, etc. Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs does not centrally maintain the details of the incidents of water logging and urban floods in cities/ towns.

The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has published the following documents/advisory guidelines for improving urban drainage and flood management: …2/--2- i. Urban and Regional Development Plans Formulation and Implementation (URDPFI) Guidelines, 2014 (https://mohua.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/URDPFI%20Guidelines%20Vol%20I(2).pdf ) ii. Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Urban Flooding (https://mohua.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/SOP%20Urban%20flooding_5%20May%202017.pdf) iii. River Centric Urban Planning Guidelines in 2021 to enable cities in the development of conjunctive water management approaches including nature-based solution (https://mohua.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/RCUP%20Guidelines.pdf) iv. Guidance Document on Creation of Rain Water Harvesting Parks (https://mohua.gov.in/pdf/6566e1048ab41guidance-document-on-rainwater-harvesting-parks- final.pdf) v. Manual on Storm Water Drainage System (https://mohua.gov.in/publication/manual-on-storm- water-drainage-systems--2019.php) Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) launched in the year 2015, inter alia, has a component on storm water drainage, which involved construction and improvement of drains/ storm water drains in order to reduce and eliminate flooding and creating green spaces and parks. Under AMRUT, 03 Storm Water Drainage project worth ₹237.99 crore was taken up by the State of Bihar including 01 Storm Water Drainage project in Patna City. Under AMRUT, 25 green spaces and park projects worth ₹31.1 crore was taken up in Bihar which includes 01green spaces and park projects worth ₹4.72 crore in Patna City covering development of 65.53 acres of permeable green space area.

Under AMRUT 2.0, projects for green spaces and parks and rejuvenation of water bodies and wells can be taken up by the States. Under AMRUT 2.0, proposals of the State for 03 water body rejuvenation projects worth ₹4.06 crore have been approved. 18 green spaces and park projects worth ₹70.26 crore covering 164.77 acre have been approved under AMRUT 2.0, which includes 3 park projects in Patna worth Rs.29.98 crore. The State has not taken up any water body rejuvenation project in Patna.

Besides, under AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0 sewerage and septage management projects have been undertaken, which inter alia help in evacuation of storm water. Under AMRUT 2.0, 11 Sewerage and Septage Management projects have been approved covering 2365.2 KM of sewer network. The State has not taken up any sewerage/ septage management project in Patna.

…3/--3- As informed by the State Government, except for temporary water logging caused by intense and prolonged spells of monsoon rains specially in unplanned and low lying localities, the problem of urban flooding has been resolved. The State Government has informed that following projects for drainage/ flood mitigation have been sanctioned for Patna under AMRUT and Smart Cities Mission:

S.No. Name of the Project Approved cost

1. Beur More to Mithapur Bus Stand Nala Rs.48.95 crore

2. Bakarganj Nala Rs.26.98 crore As per the information furnished by the State, the status of funds released during the last 5 years

and progress of works are as below:

S.No. Name of the project Approved cost Physical progress

1. Catchment 01 to 09 (09 Nos of drain network Rs. 957.51 crore 84.94% project across Patna town and adjoining areas)

2. Bakarganj Nala Rs. 26.98 crore 50.10%

3. Saidpur Nala Rs. 331.36 crore 18.45%

4. Patna Junction Area Drainage Network Rs. 13.42 crore 95%

5. 22 DPS Rs. 325.48 crore 74.87%

6. Kurjee Nala Rs. 180.99 crore 5.70%

7. Anandpuri Nala Rs. 91.27 crore 5.26% The State Government has also informed that 36 storm water drains are at construction stage across different flood prone cities in the State of Bihar as long term solution for flooding and water logging. Apart from this, 22 Nos of Drainage Pumping Stations are also at construction stage to cater water-logging issues in the city of Patna and adjoining areas. Under Mukhya Mantri Shahri Samagra Vikas Yojana of the State, various small scale drain projects have been taken up to expand drainage network and to cover maximum urban area in all ULBs of the State.

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