Govt undertakes project to improve drainage system in Melanie

Following concerns surrounding the lack of proper drainage and irrigation in Melanie, East Coast Demerara (ECD), Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha assured residents of upcoming work to desilt the canals and resolve the issue.
On Monday, Mustapha met with residents from Melanie and other surrounding communities to discuss the scope of the scheduled drainage works.
“I saw there is a lot of encroachment on the reserve. As a result of that, our machines cannot get free access to desilt the canals,” Mustapha said.
“I have put some other plans in place where the machine will manoeuvre to go to different parts of the reserve so we can clean those canals,” Mustapha said.
This move comes after a visit to the community by Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, who shared the Government’s plans to intervene and resolve the matter.
“The Vice President would’ve promised the residents in this area that I would visit the area and start some excavation work which we’ve started a few days back but because of the impediment of the reserve, we are getting these kinds of problems,” Mustapha clarified.

“So, I hope that after today, we’ll not have this issue arise again – that we’ll have some drainage facility for the residents but at the same time, we’ll do a comprehensive drainage plan for this area so that we can desilt all the canals.”
Prior to Mustapha’s engagement with residents on Monday, engineers from the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) visited the area to assess the communities’ drainage networks.
With this impending project, residents are expected to not only receive better drainage but also health benefits, as the area is typically infested with mosquitoes.
Meanwhile, Minister Mustapha plans to return to the community alongside Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton to engage with cash crop and livestock farmers, as well as the co-op society.
“I will be back in the area because there are a number of farmers, both livestock and cash crop farmers, and they want a meeting with me. Also, the co-op society wants to meet with Minister Hamilton. I am hoping that I will bring Minister Hamilton with me when I come back here,” Mustapha said.
Melanie, like several other communities across the country, is undergoing significant development, not only with an enhanced drainage system but also in its road infrastructure.
In March, a once deplorable access road that runs along the nursery school in the village was replaced by a $27.6 million newly-paved roadway.
Constructed by Omari Blocks Construction, this reconstructed asphalt concrete road measures 476m by 5.48m.