Grass not properly cut in Luyang
Published on: Friday, April 02, 2021
By: Sidney Skinner
The grass-cutters, like the one above, only trimmed the grass between the moonson drain in Luyang and the edge of the water pipe.
THE contractor given the responsibility of cutting the grass on the land beside a Luyang monsoon drain will be asked to ensure that his workers attend to the entire width of the reserve.This follows a Luyang resident’s observations about the half-hearted effort being made to maintain the government land behind his home.
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He said the grass on the reserve had not been cut for more than six months.
When workers finally came to do this in March, they only dealt with the overgrown greenery on a fraction of the land and left the bulk of it uncut, according to him.
The homeowner provided Hotline with the location of the drain which was forwarded to the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID).
A Department spokeswoman said an oversight on the part of the contractor was likely to blame for what transpired.
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“The individual has only just been appointed to look after our reserves in the area and is likely to be unfamiliar will all the requirements of the job,” she said.
“Our staff will double-check his work and advise him accordingly on what is expected of him and his workers.”
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She said a large water distribution main was found to be sitting on the reserve during a preliminary check of the area behind the resident’s house.
“The section of the land between his backyard fence and the oversized blue pipe was full of lalang and weeds.
On the homeowner’s claims about the lack of maintenance carried out on the reserve, the spokeswoman said the previous contractor’s tenure ended in June last year.
“A new contractor was awarded this task after the Department received the necessary funds to do so.
“He is duty- bound to deal with any overgrown greenery on the entire width of the land.
She said the DID would monitor the progress of the individual’s work to ensure that it was being performed as it should.
This drain reserve has not been tended to in over 10 months.
FRED of Luyang said the area beyond his backyard fence in Taman Milek Phase 4 was last tended to in the middle of last year.
“The ‘lalang’ has grown so tall that it almost reaches to the top of my fence,” he said.
“Interspersed between this grass are various weeds which are also thriving on this land.”
He feared that unscrupulous parties might use this overgrown land to carry out misdeeds in his neighbourhood.
“The unkempt greenery would make the perfect hiding place for thieves. Several of my neighbours are afraid that our homes risk being broken into.
Fred also voiced his concern that this area had become a breeding ground for mosquitoes and other pests.
“At times, snakes and rats have been seen slithering into, or scurrying across, our compound.”
“The local authorities should be more diligent in having the grass cut before there is a dengue outbreak here.
“What is the point of fogging only after such cases are reported in our neighbourhood?”
He said he related his misgivings to City Hall staff in January and, a week later, one of the agency’s officers came to inspect the reserve.
“This staff informed me that the area beyond my fence belonged to the Department.
“As such, the onus for tending to the land fell to this agency. He assured me that my grievance would be forwarded to the DID.”
He contacted City Hall again in February and March, when no action was forthcoming.
“One Saturday morning in the middle of March, I was glad to hear the sound of the grass-cutting machines coming from behind my fence.
“My joy was shortlived, however, as I later discovered that only the grass between the edge of the drain and the pipe had been cut.”
He said the greenery between the water main and my fence was left untouched.
Fred contacted Hotline for help a week later, saying that the grass-cutters had yet to return to finish the job.
His grievance was initially forwarded to City Hall.
A spokesman for the agency’s Landscaping Department said it was aware of the homeowner’s concerns about overgrown drain reserve.
“A week after he contacted us in January, our staff went to his neighbourhood,” he said.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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